


The Dragon's Curse

by Alshoruzen



Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Curses, Developing Relationship, Getting Together, Halloween, Kaitou Kid Heist (Meitantei Conan/Magic Kaito), M/M, Post-Black Organization Takedown (Meitantei Conan), Post-Conan Kudou Shinichi, Romance, Supernatural Elements, cursed jewel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-01
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:20:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 37,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26752720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alshoruzen/pseuds/Alshoruzen
Summary: KID's latest heist has awakened an ancient power. Now he finds he's slowly turning into someone (or something) else. He needs to find a way to fix this before he does something he'll regret. KaiShin
Relationships: Kudou Shinichi | Edogawa Conan/Kuroba Kaito | Kaitou Kid
Comments: 15
Kudos: 174





	1. The Dragon's Heart

**Author's Note:**

> This is cross-posted on FF.Net as usual. I am only estimating the number of chapters based on where the story's gotten to by Ch.14, which is where it's at on FF. So the chapter count may change.

"And then we'll live happily ever after." Suzuki Sonoko sighed, temporarily lost in her romantic fantasies. Her trance lasted for about a minute before she suddenly rounded on the young man standing behind her. "Are you even listening to me?!"

Blue eyes blinked at her. "No."

The petit girl scowled and turned to the last member of their little group. "Ran! Do something about him!"

Mouri Ran laughed nervously, pushing her long, dark brown hair back over her shoulder. She cast an eye around the exhibition hall, hoping to see something with which to distract her irate friend. Honestly, she wished Makoto-san would get back from his trip abroad soon. Of course, he was participating in a series of competitions taking place all around the world, so it was unlikely that he was going to show up again any time soon. But Sonoko was getting more out of hand by the day with her boyfriend's long absence.

"Why don't we go get something to eat?" the brunette decided. "The food looks good today."

Sonoko considered this suggestion with a dissatisfied frown. Eventually, however, she nodded, but not before rounding on their last companion. "You better not forget. You're supposed to find KID-sama for me."

The blue-eyed young man made a noncommittal noise in his throat and lifted one shoulder in a half shrug.

"Come on Shinichi," Ran said, turning. "You haven't had dinner yet either, right?"

"I'm not hungry—" he started to say but stopped when he suddenly found himself on the receiving end of a ferocious glare. "I—I mean I'll go get something right after I take another look around."

"I'll hold you to that," she said crisply before steering Sonoko towards the banquet table set up on the far side of the exhibition hall.

Kudo Shinichi watched the girls go with a certain level of chagrin. It had been two years since he'd returned to being an adult, and Ran was still mothering him like he was still seven. But then again, it was better than having her mad at him.

A small smile tugged at his lips. He'd been terrified about what her reaction might be when he'd first told her the truth about that fateful night at Tropical Land and his following years as Edogawa Conan. But, though she hadn't been pleased, she hadn't punched his lights out either. And eventually they'd both come to grips with the truth.

The smile fell from his face.

A lot had changed in the past five years since that awful night when he'd first met Gin and Vodka. Some of those changes were good. He'd gotten to know the world better than he had before. He'd learned the hard way about his own limitations and naïveté. He'd learned about the things that really mattered, and he really believed that he'd become a better detective for it. He had also made friends—real friends that he knew he could rely on.

But all those valuable lessons had come at their own cost.

There was the acute paranoia he doubted he'd ever be able to lose. But it was more than that. He'd lost three years. And in that time his already tenuous ability to connect to others his own age had apparently withered away. He'd seen too much, he supposed. He couldn't go back to the blissful ignorance that was youth. Sometimes, like now, when he was standing in a crowd, he found himself wondering where it was he was headed.

Haibara sometimes accused him of being depressed. He was inclined to tell her that she was exaggerating. There were just times when he found himself feeling adrift. In those moments, he couldn't help but think of how vast the world was—vast and chaotic and distant, full of shadows that no amount of light could drive away.

Scowling, he gave himself a mental slap. What was he thinking? If he kept moping like that, Haibara would be right. It was the atmosphere of this place. That's what it was.

This party was being held to open an art exhibition themed around urban myths and supernatural beings. With that in mind, the proprietors had thought it would be a grand idea to have the event on Halloween night. In accordance to the theme, the entire exhibit was decked out like a haunted house, all dark and creepy and candlelit. Was it any wonder a person would find himself having weird thoughts?

Honestly, Shinichi didn't really want to be here. Or, well, part of him did, but most of him didn't. There were many reasons for this, not least of which was the fact that this was a costume party. Because of that, Ran and Sonoko had bullied him into a black kimono. He hadn't bothered to ask them what he was supposed to be, although he'd overheard Sonoko making snide jokes about shinigami. He might have been annoyed (he didn't particularly like being reminded of the fact that he tripped over dead people on a nearly daily basis, and didn't it cross their minds at all that such comments might be hurtful?), but he had long since mastered the art of Ignoring Sonoko. At least the costume wasn't embarrassing like the ones his mother liked to force on him. He shuddered at the memories and hurriedly shoved them to the back of his mind.

Of course, Sonoko herself was the other reason he hadn't wanted to come. There was, after all, supposed to be a KID heist here tonight. And nothing in the world was quite as unbearable as Suzuki Sonoko when she was in one of her "I must get KID-sama to notice me~!" moods.

The problem was that the KID heist was also responsible for the tiny part of Shinichi that wanted to be here. The magician thief hadn't changed much in the last few years—well, unless you counted the way he'd gotten even better at his work, if that was possible. The master thief was still driving the police up the walls with his antics and still insanely popular despite his crimes. He was still brilliant, still crazy, still arrogant as hell—and he still treated Shinichi like he was Conan. Like they were friendly rivals: sometimes enemies, sometimes allies, but always equals who shared an understanding about the darks and the lights of the world that most people never even saw.

Shinichi sighed. What was it coming to when a detective felt like the only person who could relate to him was a thief?

"What's wrong? You don't look like you're enjoying the party."

Shinichi jumped and whirled around. He hadn't sensed anyone approaching, but there was now a man dressed in a pirate costume complete with long coat, cutlass, plumed hat, and eye patch standing right beside him. The stranger was taller than he was, but, from what little he could make out of the man's face, he probably wasn't much older. That meant he was probably the son of one of the many wealthy families in attendance. This wasn't the kind of party your average college student could get into after all.

"I'm fine," Shinichi said politely. "I'm not here for the party."

"Oh?" The stranger studied him for a long moment before recognition dawned in his one green eye. "Oh, I knew I'd seen your face before. You're that detective, Kudo Shinichi. So that means you're here for the KID heist."

Shinichi nodded and turned back to the display in front of him. He thought the conversation was over, but apparently his new acquaintance had other ideas. He stepped closer, looking into the display case as well.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

"I guess," Shinichi said without much enthusiasm. The piece inside the case was a necklace. It was a large, star ruby set in a gold pendant shaped like dragon claws. It was well made, certainly, but it struck Shinichi as a little, well, tasteless. Like something a cultist would wear.

"Have you heard the story?"

Shinichi shook his head.

"The story goes that, many, many years ago, a great warrior, hoping to be able to protect his beloved kingdom from their violent neighbors for as long as he could, slew a dragon and ate its heart. He found this jewel in its heart and had it made into this pendant in memory of the event. It was said that eating a dragon's heart would grant a person immortality. And indeed, he lived for quite a long time. However, year by year, he became more and more greedy, vicious and wrathful. The formerly dedicated warrior soon became an absolute tyrant. He killed his own king and claimed the throne. Then he set out to conquer the surrounding lands. All who came under his rule were forced to toil endlessly to increase his wealth. Those who knew him from before his change claimed that the dragon he killed had cursed him to punish him and all his people for daring to attack a dragon. In any case, his reign was long and terrible. In the end, the kingdom was reduced to ruins by his tyranny."

"That's not a very flattering story."

The pirate laughed. "No, I suppose it isn't. But an epic story does tend to add value to things."

"No accounting for taste," Shinichi muttered under his breath.

The stranger must have heard him though because he laughed. "Everyone likes something different. Have you seen the tapestries they have in the back? They have much less grizzly tales."

"I haven't seen them yet," Shinichi admitted.

"Come with me and I'll tell you all about them then."

The detective hesitated, but it seemed rude to refuse. That, and there was another hour and a half to wait before the heist. Might as well spend it learning the layout of the rest of the exhibition hall. And this person didn't seem intent on grilling him with questions about his three year absence, which was always a plus. He just had to make sure to snag a little something from the banquet table so Ran wouldn't get mad.

-0-

Kuroba Kaito watched out of his one uncovered eye as Kudo Shinichi gazed up at the massive tapestry before them, marveling at the intricacy of the image upon it of a lush forest through which multicolored fairies darted and danced. The tapestry was beautiful work, true, but to Kaito, it was nothing compared to the small but genuine smile lingering on Shinichi's lips. The detective had looked tense and tired when he had first walked into the party—which really wasn't how Kaito wanted his favorite detective to look when coming to his heist. It had bothered him, and, with time to spare before his show was to begin, he'd made a point of seeing if he could do something about cheering the other up. It looked like he could mark that mission accomplished.

He wondered how he could have come to care so much about Shinichi's wellbeing. Fate really was a strange thing. It had started out as a kind of wary respect for someone who he might actually acknowledge as an equal. With it had come curiosity, especially since he had thought at first that the boy was just a seven year old brat. No little pipsqueak of a grade school student should have been able to think like that.

Over the course of their association, curiosity had grown into fondness. And, as he gained a deeper understanding of who little Conan really was and the similarity between their situations, he'd found himself growing attached. He looked forward to when Shinichi would show up to his heists, and it always inspired a sense of triumph in him when he was able to wring a genuine look of surprise or amazement from him.

Kaito liked having secrets. He horded information like a dragon would gold. He had never felt that need to confide in anyone. But lately he'd found himself wondering… If he did ever decide to share his story, would Shinichi listen?

He thought that Shinichi would, but he supposed he was unlikely to find out anytime soon. The time wasn't right.

Speaking of time, it was almost time for his heist to begin.

He placed a hand on Shinichi's shoulder. The detective looked up at him, apparently startled from wherever his thoughts had wandered. Grinning, Kaito leaned in close to the shorter boy's face.

"Well, Tantei-kun, it's been fun. But it looks like it's time for us both to get to work. Oh, and by the way, you look very pretty in that kimono. I like it."

He watched as blue eyes widened, and was that a blush? How cute. He could see Shinichi's lips parting to form the word "KID", but every light in the building went out before the word could be uttered.

-0-

Shinichi took a deep breath before pushing open the door to the roof. He had, he must admit, not been particularly up to speed during the heist. He blamed it on KID's words and actions just before the blackout. Shinichi could still acutely remember the way his heart and skipped a beat then started beating a mile a minute. Honestly, what had the stupid thief been thinking?

Shinichi shook himself. It was KID. The thief had always been crazy, and he'd always had a penchant for messing with people. His actions didn't mean anything.

Shinichi did his best to ignore the hint of melancholy that crept into his thoughts when he reminded himself of that. Why should it bother him? It wasn't like he had feelings for the thief or anything… Right? Right.

He opened the door and stepped outside.

He heard the heavy flapping of KID's white cape in the wind before he saw the thief standing some distance away.

"I was expecting you sooner," KID said mildly, that familiar smirk of his dancing about his lips. "Was it the outfit slowing you down or something else?"

Shinichi scowled to hide his embarrassment, silently cursing his tendency to blush. "Just hurry up and give the jewel back."

"Tsk, tsk, patience is a virtue, my dear detective." Turning casually, the thief held up his hand. The ruby pendant spun sparkling in the air. "What do you think? Should I—"

Shinichi frowned when the thief stopped talking abruptly. "KID?"

No reaction.

What was going on?

The pendant hit the roof with a tinkle as the thief doubled over.

"KID!" Shinichi exclaimed, alarmed. He ran towards the thief, eyes searching the surrounding rooftops for any signs of danger. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he focused back on the thief. KID was clutching at his chest like he was in pain, but he wasn't making a sound. Nor was there any blood anywhere.

"KID? Are you injured?" Shinichi asked, kneeling beside the thief and reaching hesitantly for the gloved hand scrunched up in the thief's suit jacket. "Let me see. I might be able to help."

Before he could move, however, KID's free hand shot out and grabbed Shinichi's wrist in an iron grip. The detective flinched at the strength of that grip. He was probably going to have bruises tomorrow, but, at the moment, he couldn't care less about that. He was far too worried about the thief's strange behavior.

"KID," he started again only to freeze as now, finally, the magician turned to look at him.

His eyes, the eyes that Shinichi knew had been indigo, were now a vivid, fiery orange in color. And were they glowing?

Shinichi swallowed, throat suddenly dry. The world around him seemed to fade. He could hear an odd rushing sound in his ears and feel his own heart pounding in his chest. He couldn't look away.

Those eyes were looking at him from KID's face, but they were not KID's eyes. And the thief's face… His cocky smirk was back, and there was no longer any signs of pain. But though the expression was KID's through and through, something just felt wrong.

Maybe this was a prank? A Halloween joke?

"Well," the thief murmured before Shinichi could speak. Using his hold on Shinichi's wrist, he pulled the detective closer as he leaned in. Shinichi's racing heart nearly stopped as Kaitou KID closed what little distance there was left between them—and kissed him.

It was a chaste kiss, but it sent fire dancing down both their veins regardless. Shinichi was left frozen, half in shock and half in horror and a tiny bit giddy in a way he wished he didn't understand.

"Such lovely eyes. You will do very nicely." KID straightened up and smoothed out his clothes, leaving a confused and speechless Shinichi still kneeling on the ground. The thief glanced up at the moon, an expression on his face like he was listening to something. Then he picked up the pendant he'd dropped earlier. Crouching before Shinichi, he picked up one of the detective's hands and pressed the pendant into it.

"I don't need this anymore. Now, I should be taking my leave." He leaned forward to murmur into Shinichi's ear. "I'll be back for you soon."

Then he was gone.

It was several minutes before Shinichi got shakily to his feet. He still couldn't quite wrap his mind around what had just happened. Those orange eyes… Had that been a trick? They had looked so real. And when KID had handed him the pendant… For an instant when the thief had drawn away, Shinichi could have sworn he saw the same pendant still in the thief's hands, only that version had been faintly transparent like the ghost of the pendant.

And of course there was the kiss.

Shinichi blushed furiously, recalling the feeling of the thief's lips on his own. His heart rate quickened just thinking about it.

Hurriedly shoving the embarrassing thoughts of how nice it had felt out of his head, he headed back inside the building. Better check up on the police and get the jewel back to its owner. The other mysteries could wait until he could clear his head.


	2. The Dragon's Shadow

Kaito frowned slightly at his bedroom ceiling. He was home, but he couldn't remember how he'd gotten back. In fact, he couldn't remember anything after reaching the roof at the end of his heist. And that didn't make sense because his memory had always been perfect.

He closed his eyes and tried to think back, but no matter how hard he concentrated, all he got was, well, nothing. Although he did have vague recollections of a dream he'd had about kissing Shinichi. It had been a pleasant dream (and, he had to admit, not the first he'd ever had on the subject), but it didn't solve his problem.

Sitting up, he looked around his room. Everything was in place. He was even in his pajamas. Could he have dreamed his heist? Nah, that was ridiculous. But he checked the date on his phone anyway. Nope, the heist had indeed been last night.

Still puzzled but figuring he had better get to school, Kaito hurried through his morning ablutions, grabbed his school uniform and bag, and was out the door mere minutes later.

Missing memories aside, he was feeling pretty amazing. He was wide awake. He felt strong and alive and just…like he was buzzing with electricity and all the possibilities in the world were dancing at his fingertips.

Of course, he always felt a little like this, but today, the feeling was so much more intense.

Arriving at his lecture hall, Kaito spotted Aoko and remembered that she should have been at the party too. Perfect. He wove his way down the pew and claimed the seat beside her.

"Hey Ahoko! Did you go to the KID heist last night?"

"I did," she agreed, tone flat.

"And?"

"KID got away, but Kudo-kun brought the jewel back."

"Oh." Odd. Aoko's tone was flat, distracted, almost uncaring. He'd expected shouting and rants about how his alter ego was an evil, conceited jerk that her father was so going to catch one of these days.

"Are you feeling okay?"

The inspector's daughter looked up and blinked, and it looked to Kaito like she'd only just noticed him. Then she sighed and shivered.

"It's just creepy, you know?"

"Huh? What's creepy?" She couldn't be talking about his heist. There had been absolutely nothing creepy about it. Right? All he'd done this time was tie everyone up in massive spider webs.

"You mean you didn't know?"

"Know what?"

Aoko sighed. "Don't you pay attention to anything in the news that isn't about that stupid thief?"

"I do," he said defensively. "But I didn't have time to watch the news this morning."

Aoko seemed to accept this as she continued to explain. "Apparently, two girls were attacked last night after the heist. They were leaving the party when, well, the thing is, no one really knows what happened. They were found in the alley behind the building, unconscious. They didn't have any physical injuries or anything, but they wouldn't wake up. They're in the hospital now being checked for poison."

Kaito felt a sudden chill. "You mean they're dead?"

"Huh? No, no. They just won't wake up. Since there aren't any outside injuries, the doctors were wondering if they might have been drugged."

"But they're going to live, right?"

Finally, Aoko smiled. "Yeah."

"That's good."

"Definitely. But, well, it's creepy."

Kaito supposed he could understand. He didn't find it creepy, but he was upset that people had been hurt right outside his heist building, and he hadn't noticed a thing. Although considering the blank in his memory, maybe he had noticed and had simply forgotten?

He was going to have to go back and take a look around that building.

-0-

"Something's bothering you."

Shinichi looked up from his coffee to blink at Ran. She had dragged him to a café that morning since neither of them had morning classes today. She did this quite regularly, claiming she needed to make sure he ate a proper breakfast every now and then. Shinichi appreciated the thought, although he was still firmly of the opinion that coffee and toast was perfectly fine breakfast material.

These mornings reminded him of being Conan again and living at the Mouri agency like a real family. It was nice… Something he hadn't experienced much of in his first childhood. His parents were just not the home kind of people.

"Did something happen at the heist?" Ran prodded when he was slow to respond.

Shinichi blushed. "N—no. I was just…thinking."

Ran's eyes narrowed. "You promised you'd tell me when things happened from now on," she said warningly.

The detective squirmed in his seat, mind flashing back to the feel of lips on his. For a fleeting moment, he wondered if he should tell Ran about what had happened. Maybe she could help him figure out the strange mixture of feelings bubbling inside him. But he just couldn't bring himself to voice any of it yet.

"I was just wondering a few things," he said finally, looking down. "KID was acting a little strange yesterday, and I was just wondering why." There. That wasn't a lie.

"Oh." Ran didn't look entirely satisfied, but she did back off a little. "Well, KID's always been a little strange, right?"

"I…guess so."

"Did you hear about the attack on those girls?"

"Yeah."

"Any idea what happened?"

"No. But we should know more once the hospital figures out what's going on with the victims."

"I hope they'll be all right."

Shinichi nodded. That case was bothering him too. But there really wasn't anything he could do about it with the little information they had. For all anyone knew, those girls had just caught some strange new illness.

Even so, maybe he should go take a look at the scene for himself after class.

Anything to get his mind off that kiss.

-0-

It was an alley like any other. If there was anything unusual about it, it was that it was a little narrower than the average alley in this area. Standing just outside the back doors of the building where the party had taken place, Shinichi looked up and down the length of the alley. The yellow tape put up by the police to keep people away was still there, though the officers had long since determined that there was nothing else for them to find. Shinichi had to admit that he agreed.

The thing that made even less sense about the attack, if attack it had been, was that the attacker had had no discernable motive. The girls hadn't been robbed. Nor had they had any known enemies who'd want to hurt them.

"Find anything?"

Shinichi nearly jumped out of his skin. He whirled around so fast that he nearly fell. A strong hand caught his arm and pulled him back upright. He found himself face to face with a man dressed in dark clothes with sandy hair and sunglasses. He'd never seen this man before, but he recognized that voice and that tone and that aura of absolute confidence.

"KID?" he gasped. "What are you doing here?"

The thief smirked. "Same thing you are, I believe. You haven't answered my question."

"O—oh. I…haven't found anything."

"I see. Well, don't let me distract you."

Easier said than done, Shinichi thought a bit grumpily. It was impossible to concentrate with Kaitou KID standing there behind him, watching is every move. It was a good thing he'd already finished most of his examination of the scene. He could feel the weight of the thief's gaze, and it was making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. Straightening, he wheeled around to face the thief.

"Why did you do it?" he demanded, crossing his arms defensively.

KID's expression didn't even twitch. "Do what?"

Shinichi flushed. "You know, that!"

"Uh, Tantei-kun, you realize that even I can't read minds. You know what, let's move this discussion elsewhere, This is hardly the place for a good conversation."

"…What?" Shinichi blinked, taken aback by the sudden turn of events. The next thing he knew, he was being steered out of the alley and down the street to a coffee shop on the corner. And suddenly he was sitting at a table across from the Kaitou KID.

Was he dreaming? It would still be strange even if it was a dream.

It was KID who broke the silence. "So, what exactly did you want to ask me about?"

Shinichi frowned down into his coffee. Awkward as the situation was, the only person who could really answer his question was sitting right there. If he let the opportunity pass him by then he would have only himself to blame. So, taking a deep breath, he glanced around to make sure no one was nearby then leaned forward and lowered his voice.

"The…the k—kiss. And what you said before you left." He sat back again, watching the thief expectantly.

Unbeknownst to him, KID was experiencing his own moment of shock. Did Tantei-kun really just say what he thought he'd said? Did that mean that dream he'd had about kissing the detective hadn't been a dream after all? And what could he have said before he'd left? Damn, why couldn't he remember any of this?

His mind raced furiously. He'd known for a while now that he was somewhat attracted to Kudo Shinichi. He'd noticed shortly after he'd realized that he had to let Aoko go. That had taken him some time to accept. He had cared deeply for her, and, for a while, he'd been sure that they'd be together one day—just as soon as he completed his mission and could hang up his cape for good. Of course, then he'd realized that life wasn't going to be that simple. KID wasn't a part of him that was going to disappear even if he retired, and he wasn't even sure he could ever give up the persona even if he did complete all his goals. KID had become too much a part of who he was—a part of him that connected him to his father. He couldn't afford to get into a relationship with someone who could only accept half of who he was. It wouldn't be fair to her or him. So he had forced himself to let go.

It was about that time that Shinichi had "returned". Kaito had staged a heist as soon as he'd heard the news. Maybe it was sentimental of him, but he'd wanted to congratulate the detective in person because the fact that such battles could be won was something worth celebrating. It was good to know that justice really could prevail against all the odds. And he'd wanted to commemorate the occasion. Besides, what kind of gentleman would he be if he didn't congratulate one of his erstwhile fans on such a momentous occasion?

So he'd gone all out for the show that night, and, when he and Shinichi had been alone on the roof at the end as he'd planned, he had kissed the detective's hand and congratulated him just as the fireworks went off. Shinichi had blushed, and KID had found himself thinking how cute that look on his face had been. And he'd felt a surge of pleasure at the thought that it was him who'd put that adorable flush on the detective's face.

That had been when he'd started taking notice of the fact that he might feel something more than fondness for Shinichi, but he had never intended to act on it. For one, he'd assumed that Shinichi was going to end up dating that Mouri girl. And for another, it had looked like the Aoko situation all over again. After all, Shinichi was a detective. Besides, it had only been a mild crush, nothing serious.

Things hadn't gone as he'd planned though. Tantei-kun always had been one of the few who could surprise him. The first surprise had been that Shinichi and that Mouri girl hadn't gotten together. The two appeared to have settled into something of a sibling relationship. The second surprise was the way Shinichi looked now. He didn't appear to be angry at all, only confused and maybe even a little flustered.

Did this mean that the detective might actually be open to the idea of a relationship? This was certainly food for thought.

"Well?" Shinichi asked. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

"I'm not sure what you expect me to say," the thief replied after a moment's consideration, opting for a serious tone.

"I want the truth," the detective said instantly. Not surprising, really, but it was a tall order considering KID couldn't actually remember the event in question. On the other hand, he wasn't about to let this chance slip by him. But how best to approach this?

With a flick of his wrist, the thief produced a red rose which he offered to Shinichi. "It wasn't a joke. You don't have to believe me if you don't want to, but that's the truth."

He was rewarded by a slight widening of Shinichi's eyes and a barely audible intake of breath. "I…" Shinichi started then stopped, clearly lost for words.

KID smiled. "Don't worry. I don't expect an answer right away. Just promise me you'll think about it."

Shinichi hesitated for a moment but eventually took the rose. It was a silent agreement to give the matter some thought. KID cheered inwardly. Talk about good luck. Obviously he'd done something right last night.


	3. Waking Dreams

He'd put the rose in a vase he'd bought on the way home. He hadn't meant to go out of his way to buy a vase for it. In fact, he'd been fully intent on grabbing something from the attic or maybe even making do with a cup or something. But, well, searching the attic for vases would take a long time and offered no guarantees that a vase might be found. As for the mug idea… He needed his mugs for other things, and the stem of the rose was too long for the average mug anyway. So you see, buying a vase had simply been the easiest option… It had absolutely nothing to do with any sentimental attachment to a rose from a thief.

He walked around the house with the glass vase and its elegant occupant for several minutes, trying to figure out where to put it. He'd thought about putting it in the library, but he occasionally juggled his soccer ball in there when he was thinking, and it would be a terrible shame for the vase to be accidentally broken if he ever lost control of the ball (which happened more often than most would believe—not because Shinichi's soccer skills weren't good enough but because the detective was prone to spacing out when struck by thoughts like the possible solutions to a case). Then he'd considered putting it in his bedroom, but, for some reason, the thought had made him blush. In the end, he'd put it in the kitchen (a room he visited every day). It now sat on the dining table where he had taken to contemplating its presence each morning as he drank his first (and sometimes second or third) cup of coffee.

He was still having a hard time wrapping his mind around the idea that the great Kaitou KID might actually like him. It just wasn't possible! Shinichi was a detective. He had frequently tried to foil the thief's plans. And besides, half the country was in love with the renowned magician. KID had any number of potential love interests to pick from. Surely any number of them would be better choices than a socially awkward detective who tripped over crime at every corner.

But…the thief had said he was serious. And while KID was an infamous prankster who had no qualms at all about lying, Shinichi was almost certain that the thief wouldn't joke about something like this.

So the real question was, did he like KID? He already knew he had a strong admiration and respect for the genius magician. He trusted the thief and looked forward to their meetings. But love?

"Shinichi?"

The detective jumped in his seat. If his mug hadn't already been empty, he would have spilled coffee everywhere. He whirled around, heart pounding—

Only to see Ran standing in his kitchen doorway, her copy of his house keys still dangling from her fingers. He sagged back into his seat with relief.

"Good morning," he said, belatedly remembering his manners. "Um, why are you here?"

Ran looked at him strangely. "We're going to watch the university soccer team participate in that exhibition match, remember? You were all excited about it three weeks ago. Did something come up?"

"Oh, uh, no, not really," he said, smiling sheepishly. "I just forgot. Sorry."

Ran's frown only deepened. "You know, Shinichi, you've been acting really strange ever since that KID heist. And don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about. Now are you going to explain or not? No more secrets, remember? You promised."

Shinichi glanced guiltily at the rose on the table. He had promised, but… How could he tell her about all this? He wasn't even sure what "this" was yet.

Ran, however, had noticed the direction in which her friend's eyes had moved. Her eyebrows rose in surprise. That rose hadn't been there last week. And Shinichi wasn't the kind of person who would spend money on buying roses to decorate his own house with. He was much more likely to buy books. She'd even seen him forget to buy groceries when distracted by displays of new books at the bookstore. Then again, this was someone who would forget to eat if left completely to his own devices. "Who gave you that rose?"

Shinichi instantly turned bright red. "No one! I—I mean…" He wilted under Ran's glare. "It was just KID."

Ran almost dropped her keys. "KID? As in Kaitou KID? Why would he give you a rose?"

Shinichi shrugged uncomfortably. "It's KID."

Which really was as good an explanation as any, Ran supposed, but she had the distinct impression that there was more to this than the thief's usual brand of insanity. She studied Shinichi as the detective moved to wash his mug and put it on the drying wrack.

"You know," she said carefully. "It might not be a bad thing."

Shinichi dried his hands then turned to give her a puzzled look. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, I know he's a criminal, but he does go out of his way to make sure people don't get hurt at his heists, and he has helped the police catch several more dangerous criminals. I suppose if you add the fact that he returns everything he steals then you might even be able to say he's a really good guy. He just has some…extreme hobbies."

Shinichi was now staring at her like she'd grown a second head. "Huh?"

Ran coughed lightly. "I just meant that, well, as long as he makes you happy and treats you right, I'm okay with it. Really."

The detective opened his mouth then shut it again. Suddenly, he knew exactly what Ran was getting at.

Shinichi would like very much to wake up now.

Too bad he wasn't sleeping.

He swallowed his instinctive denial. If there was anyone he might be able to talk to about this, it was Ran. His parents were a definite never. Agasa probably wouldn't have anything to say. And Haibara would probably smirk and make one of her embarrassing comments. The only other person he knew well enough to even consider discussing his personal life with was Hattori, and the other detective would probably just laugh until he gave himself cramps.

Well, a glance at the clock told him that they still had some time before they had to head over to the stadium. Sighing, he leaned back against the counter, gaze dropping to the floor as he thought about how to phrase his thoughts.

Sensing that she was about to get answers, Ran tucked her keys into a pocket and pulled out a chair.

-0-

He had dreamed of flying. This was not strange for Kuroba Kaito, the magician under the moonlight who soared the skies on his white wings whenever the fancy took him. The love for flight was ingrained into his soul (perhaps he had inherited it from his father?), and so it was no wonder that it lived on in his dreams. But when he flew in his dreams this time, it felt different. It was free, but there was a different rhythm to that freedom. It was heavy and powerful, bright and proud. He was soaring on wings that could carry him all the way around the world if he so wished. And he saw oceans of trees rippling in the wind and lakes that glimmered with reflected skies. He marveled at the sheer, unadulterated beauty of the planet and of mother nature.

This was true beauty, he would think, a wild, natural beauty unsullied by human hands. This was what the world had been meant o be.

And when he'd woken up and heard the sound of traffic outside, he'd felt a sudden pang of sorrow and anger he couldn't explain.

Shaking off the odd mood, he hopped out of bed then paused. That was weird. He'd just stepped on something crunchy. Looking down, he stared. There were dry leaves on his bedroom floor. Where in the world had those come from? They hadn't been there yesterday. Could he have accidentally tracked some in on his clothes? But he'd been at the university all yesterday. He hadn't passed through anywhere where he could have picked up dry leaves.

Now feeling slightly uneasy, Kaito cleaned the leaves up off his floor. But, instead of throwing them away, he tucked them into a plastic bag, which he placed in one of his many hidden pockets.

He'd just finished when his phone rang.

"Hey there Aoko, what's up?"

"Are you busy today/"

"Not sure yet. Why?"

"Well, Saguru and I are going to the soccer game. I was wondering if you wanted to come with us."

"And be the third wheel at your date?" he asked dryly. "No thanks."

He could practically hear Aoko rolling her eyes. "I didn't mean it like that. I was thinking you could invite Akako-chan."

Kaito grimaced. He had no idea when Aoko had gotten it into her head that he and Akako would make a good couple. No amount of argument from him had been able to change her mind.

"You know what, I kind of have a few errands to run."

"Oh come on, Kaito. Grow up. You're in college now! I know she freaked you out when we were in high school, but she's mellowed out a lot since then. And she really likes you. You should give her a chance."

"Aoko, I know you mean well, but you really need to drop this."

"But—"

"Have fun on your date~." He hung up before the girl could respond. She'd be mad, but she'd have cooled down by the next time they met.

-0-

It was kind of liberating, telling Ran about what had happened. He'd been a little nervous about her reaction, but, well, she was practically family. She really was the only person he could talk to about this.

Ran hadn't said much though. All she'd said was that she would support him. Those words, however, had meant more to him than anything else she could have said or done.

Now they were at the stadium, jostling with the other students trying to find seats. Fortunately, they'd gotten to the stadium early.

"Excuse me, can we sit here?"

Shinichi and Ran both looked up at the same time. Both of them did a double take. Shinichi found himself looking to Ran to make sure she was still sitting there. She was. And she looked just as shocked to see the girl who'd just approached them as he felt.

If Shinichi hadn't known that Ran didn't have a sister, he would have thought the two girls were related.

The newcomer looked just as shocked as they felt. Her gaze was riveted on Shinichi's face.

"Kaito?" she blurted out. "I thought you said you weren't coming!"

Shinichi stared back at her blankly. Kaito? Who was that?

The confusion might have lasted a little longer if not for the blond boy who appeared behind the Ran lookalike. "That isn't Kuroba. It's good to see you again, Kudo-san, Mouri-san. This is Nakamori Aoko. Aoko, meet Kudo Shinichi and Mouri Ran."

Aoko scrutinized Shinichi for a minute longer then laughed.

-0-

It hadn't been too hard for Kaito to find the park where the dry leaves had come from. After all, being a phantom thief, he'd tracked down much more elusive targets over the years.

Kaito wasn't actually sure what he'd expected from finding the place. He'd just felt like he should look, and he'd always trusted his gut instincts. However, he hadn't expected to arrive on the scene to see it swarming with policemen.

He almost turned around and left again. But he changed his mind. Instead, he wandered over to the rubberneckers.

"What happened?" he asked a middle-aged woman with a stroller.

"Someone was attacked here last night," she told him with a shiver. "A jogger. Some teenagers found him this morning. It's hard to believe. This neighborhood is usually so peaceful."

"You mean someone was killed here?"

"No, thankfully. They said he was still alive. They took him to the hospital."

Kaito didn't have to feign his relief. "That's good at least. I hope he pulls through."

The woman smiled at him. "Yeah."

Detaching himself from the onlookers, Kaito found himself a different spot closer to the police officers. Sure, it was good that no one was dead, but the police wouldn't be out here in such force if it had just been your run of the mill mugging. He could sense something more complicated in the works, and he didn't like it.

-0-

"You really look a lot like my friend Kaito," Aoko said, shaking her head in amazement. She, Ran, Hakuba, and Shinichi had decided to go grab a bite to eat together after the game. Now they were sitting in a café just off campus.

"Although," Aoko continued, "now that I get a better look at you, I guess you're pretty different in a lot of ways too. I don't think Kaito's hair has ever been neat in his life! Your eyes are different colors too. And I think he might be taller."

Shinichi shrugged. There wasn't really anything to say. Although, when he thought about it, the differences she described reminded him an awful lot of someone. Someone who he knew looked a lot like him…

But what were the chances of Aoko's friend being Kaitou KID? She was Nakamori-keibu's daughter after all, and her boyfriend was a detective who often helped out the KID task force.

Wait a moment. Hadn't Hakuba said once that he had a prime suspect for KID's civilian identity? Hakuba might have some issues, but he was a good detective. Add that to the things Shinichi already knew about the thief and there was a very good chance that Aoko's friend really was KID. It would be crazy, but it was KID after all.

"Excuse me," Shinichi said, breaking in upon the girl's musings. "But can you tell me what your friend's full name is?"

"Oh, of course. It's Kuroba Kaito. Have you heard of him? He's a professional magician, if you can believe it. I'm not sure where he finds the time to do that and take college classes."

"Among other things," Hakuba muttered under his breath so quietly that Shinichi wasn't sure he'd heard correctly. He did hear though, and the comment only bolstered the theory he'd been forming.

Kuroba Kaito. He repeated the name to himself in his head, feeling giddy in a totally undignified way. He couldn't help it though. He turned to look out the window so the others wouldn't see him blush.

Kuroba Kaito…

-0-

"Don't you think you've been having a few too many late nights?"

Kaito blinked across the table at his mother, his mouth still full of pancakes. "Mrrm?"

She folded her hands on the table and frowned at him. "I know commuting from home is easier for you than staying at the dorms considering your extracurricular activities, but this house isn't exactly close to your university. I know you don't need much sleep, but even you have to rest now and then. I believe we discussed this when we discussed your choice not to move into the dormitories."

Kaito swallowed his pancake so he could talk. "I know. I remember. Where's this coming from anyway? It's not like I've been out late any more often than I normally am."

"You've been out late almost every night for almost two weeks."

Kaito only blinked again.

His mother's expression saddened. "Just be careful, all right?"

And now Kaito felt guilty. His mother clearly thought he was up to something and just didn't want to tell her. This time, however, he honestly had no idea what she was getting at. He hadn't gone anywhere last night. He'd spent the afternoon perfecting a new magic trick. Then he'd had dinner with some of his college friends, after which he'd come home, did some reading for class, researched several possible heist targets, then gone to bed.

He was still puzzling over his mother's odd accusation when he set off for campus.

-0-

Kudo Shinichi was sitting at a café, looking over reports he had just received from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police. These cases were all centered around the sudden plague of what media was starting to term the Sleeping Sickness. It was happening all around the city and had been since that KID heist on Halloween. There had been eight victims up to date. None of them had died, but neither had any of them woken up. No injuries could be found, and none of them had tested positive for any known poisons. It was definitely starting to look more like a new illness than a crime, but that didn't explain why all the victims had collapsed while out in unpopulated places at night. And all except the first two girls had been alone when struck down.

If it was a plague, it was a strange one. The victims had nothing to do with each other. They frequented different places, had different hobbies, and had likely never met. And yet none of the people they did associate with had come down with whatever it was. They had all also been exceptionally healthy before their collapses. Come to think of it, maybe that was something they did have in common. They weren't just healthy. They were actually above averagely fit, and all were in their late teens to early twenties.

Blue eyes narrowed in thought.

"That's a mighty deep frown you've got there."

Shinichi started at the familiar voice and looked up. A young man had seated himself across the table from him. He recognized the newcomer's face immediately. It was KID's disguise from the Halloween party sans pirate costume.

Shinichi blinked. "KID? What are you doing here?"

The thief offered him one of his most charming smiles. "I was just passing by and thought I'd say hello."

"Oh." Blushing, Shinichi looked down.

"You don't mind, do you?"

"N—no, I don't mind."

KID's smile softened. Waving over a waitress, he ordered a sandwich and a soda. Then he settled down to watch Shinichi reading through his files. The thief had been telling the truth when he said he'd been passing by.

He'd spotted Shinichi through the café window and decided to pay him a visit. He'd been feeling uneasy ever since he'd had that conversation with his mother, but, sitting here with Shinichi, he found himself feeling calmer. That cute blush that had appeared on Shinichi's face when he'd said he didn't mind Kaito's company had gone a long way in lifting his spirits. He wondered if he could consider this as an indication that Shinichi returned his feelings—or at least that the detective was open to his advances.

They didn't talk a whole lot that first time at the café. Both were deep in their own thoughts. But, by the end of the hour, they had both come to the conclusion that they were comfortable in each other's company. Kaito found Shinichi's presence soothing, and Shinichi, though he'd expected to be nervous, found himself feeling strangely secure. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it was a nice feeling.

When the magician rose from his seat, he produced a red rose with a flick of his wrist and offered it to Shinichi. "Would you mind if I dropped by again?"

Shinichi glanced from the rose to the thief's face then back. He recalled his conversation with Ran and the hours he had spent mulling over his own feelings for the thief. Taking a deep breath, he took the rose.

"I come here every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoon," he said, relieved that he managed not to stutter.

KID paused before his face broke out into a broad grin. "I'll see you the day after tomorrow then." Taking a chance, he ducked and brushed a chaste kiss across the detective's cheek. "It's a date," he murmured into Shinichi's ear before he straightened and doffed an imaginary hat. He was rewarded by the most adorable expression of startled happiness he had ever seen.

Shinichi couldn't rid himself of his blush for almost ten whole minutes after KID had left. But, he realized, he felt happier than he had in a very long time. He no longer had any doubts that he wanted to give this relationship a chance. There were going to be a lot of problems, but…maybe it would be worth it.

Three weeks of meetings later, he knew it was worth it.


	4. Foreboding

Aoko didn't bother holding back her exasperated groan when she saw Kaito's outline for their presentation. "Bakaito! We're giving a history presentation, not a magic show! We are not writing our main points out in flaming letters! And there will be absolutely no confetti or glitter!"

"But we're supposed to have visual aids," Kaito argued, tossing the juggling balls he'd been spinning through the air even higher and adding three more brightly covered spheres.

"We're supposed to have a power point or projection slides or something like that!"

The magician pulled a disgusted face. "But that's so predictable." He pronounced the word 'predictable' like it was the name of something gross he'd found stuck to the bottom of his shoe. "And boring. Why not put on the best presentation we can? I'm sure our classmates would appreciate it."

Aoko did not look mollified. If anything, her scowl deepened. "We only get ten minutes. And I'm not failing a general ed requirement because you set fire to our classroom!"

"Aoko, I'm hurt. Do you really think I'd be that careless?"

Deciding she'd had enough of this argument, Aoko whipped a large, stuffed salmon out of her book bag. "No magic tricks during the presentation! I mean it!"

Kaito blanched and leapt backward off of the park bench they'd been working on. Since when had Aoko started hauling monstrosities like that around on a daily basis?!

"well?" Aoko demanded, raising the stuffed fish threateningly.

It was Kaito's turn to scowl. "Fine. Whatever. No fire writing during the presentation."

"Or confetti or glitter!"

Damn. She'd gotten better at spotting his loopholes. "Or confetti or glitter. Sheesh. This is going to be boring."

Now all smiles again, Aoko returned her scaly weapon to her bag.

Kaito smirked inwardly. She might have gotten better at spotting the loopholes, but she still wasn't quite good enough.

Now that that argument was over, the two settled back down to working out their presentation. Aoko didn't even bat an eye as several of Kaito's juggling balls popped and turned into doves as they worked. But the other visitors to the park certainly took notice, and they soon had a small audience of wide-eyed children.

The day was going pretty much as Aoko would have expected if it hadn't been for that incident. It was, the inspector's daughter thought, one afternoon she was never going to forget. Even years later, looking back, she could never provide herself with an explanation for any of it, and that chilled her almost as much as the incident itself.

It happened right after Kaito concluded the impromptu magic show he'd put on when they'd finished working on their presentation.

The audience had dispersed, and Kaito whistled to call his doves back. They returned in a flurry of wings and lined up on the bench where the two university students had been working. The magician had glanced over the line and noticed immediately that one dove was missing.

"Hold on, Aoko. I'm going to go look for her real fast. I'll be right back."

Aoko had no sooner nodded when they both heard the laughter drifting to them on the breeze.

"Man, I can't believe you nailed it," one voice was saying.

"Told you I had good aim," another voice replied, sounding smug.

"Oh come on, one lucky shot doesn't make you skilled," a third voice said.

"Yeah? I'll just have to prove it again then. Just point out a target and I'll prove it wasn't a fluke."

Kaito had glanced in the direction of the voices more out of reflex than any real interest, but the moment he had, his sharp eyes had spotted the small, white shape lying in the grass some fifty meters away. Even from this distance, Kaito could see the splash of red on those white feathers. Another fifty meters past it, three teenage boys were walking away. One was tossing a rock up and down in his hand.

Aoko had also looked in the same direction. Being an inspector's daughter who was aiming to follow in her father's footsteps one day, she'd gotten pretty good at picking up and putting together clues too. And she read the situation almost as quickly as Kaito did. Her temper flared, but, before she could even open her mouth, Kaito had shot across the field.

Aoko was left by the bench with her mouth hanging open. But it was not the uncouth teens who had her frozen to her spot.

She had known Kaito for pretty much forever. Ever since that day they had met in front of the Ekoda clock tower, they had been good friends. He had, as long as she could recall, always been a cheerful and laid back if rather mischievous boy. Sure, his sense of humor could be more than a little twisted sometimes, but he'd always been slow to anger. In fact, she couldn't remember ever seeing him really, truly angry. Or, well, no, she supposed that wasn't entirely true. Kaito was human too. Of course he got angry at things. But he usually dealt with anger with a smile and a boatload of humiliating pranks. He'd never been the sort of person to resort to violence.

Which was why Aoko couldn't believe what she was seeing.

The first teen landed in the park's fountain head first with a huge splash. One of his friends let out a yelp as he was yanked up into a tree by one leg. The force with which he was dragged into the air had him smacking hard into the trunk of the tree. He was definitely going to have bruises tomorrow, but he might actually mind those less than the vomit-colored mess his hair had become. That was typical Kaito though. What wasn't was the way he had the last of the trio, the one with the rock, pinned to the ground with a knee in the boy's stomach and a hand around his throat. And Kaito now had his rock. The magician was tossing that rock up and down in his free hand in a manner that made Aoko's blood go cold. She couldn't hear what he was saying, but, whatever he'd said, it drained all the color right out of the teen's face.

Breaking out of her trance, Aoko ran forward, grabbing Kaito's arm. "Kaito! What are you doing?!"

She almost let go and retreated herself when Kaito's head whipped around. The eyes that met hers were bright orange. And they were burning with fury. For an instant, she was afraid.

She reacted without thinking. Her hand came up, and she smacked the magician across the face.

"Ow! Ahoko! What the hell was that for?"

The young woman let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. The eyes glaring at her were indigo again like they should be.

"What were you about to do?"

Kaito stared at her blankly then looked down. He seemed honestly surprised to see the blubbering teen under him.

"I—I'm sorry," the teen whimpered, eyes all but bugging out with terror. "I didn't know it was yours. I swear!"

Kaito's expression smoothed into a stony mask as he remembered exactly what this person's transgression had been. But to everyone's relief, he discarded the rock

"If I ever see you do such a thing again—"

"I—I won't! I won't!"

Kaito snorted, but he released his terrified captive and strode back to where his dove was lying. Behind him, the teen and his sopping wet friend scurried to get their last companion out of the tree so they could flee. Aoko watched them go, feeling odd. What they had done was unforgiveable, but Kaito…

She moved to stand beside him as he gently picked up the dove. Her heart rose when she saw the bird flutter weakly. "She's alive!"

"Her wing bones have been shattered," Kaito murmured, face grim. "I'm going home. You okay walking back to your dorm by yourself?"

"Of course I'll be okay," she said.

"Right. I'll see you tomorrow then."

And he was gone.

Aoko sighed. What an awful way to end the day.

Already well on his way home, Kaito was feeling conflicted. He was still angry at those creeps who'd injured his dove, but he was also worried. One moment, he'd been standing with Aoko. He remembered the instant when he'd seen his dove and realized what had happened. The next thing he knew, Aoko had slapped him. He couldn't remember anything that had happened in between those two moments, but the look on Aoko's face had told him more than enough.

If she hadn't stopped him, what would he have done?

Something was seriously wrong. He had to do something. He had to figure out what was going on with him.

Before he did something he'd seriously regret.

But, considering his spates of memory loss, he couldn't do this alone.

-0-

Shinichi made his way up the path to his own front door with slow steps, gaze fixed ahead but unseeing. His mind was still back in the hospital at the police interview. The two girls who had been found outside KID's heist building had woken up today. The things they'd had to say though…

What did it all mean?

Unlocking his door on autopilot, Shinichi stepped inside, slipped out of his shoes, and made his way into the kitchen to make coffee. He started the coffeemaker then turned to lean back against the counter as he waited. Or at least that had been the plan. He hadn't expected to turn around to find the Kaitou KID standing right there in his kitchen.

It was a good thing he hadn't poured his coffee yet because, if he had, there would have been a shattered mug and coffee all over the floor by now. Though they had been dating (he blushed at the thought) for a little over a month now, this was the first time they had met anywhere outside of the café. Nor had he seen the thief without a disguise yet (in person anyway. Aoko had showed him a photograph of her friend Kaito to prove just how alike they looked. One look at that photo had been the last piece of evidence Shinichi needed to be sure that he'd found KID. It had been in the color of his eyes and the way he smirked. But Shinichi had decided to hold off on revealing that he now knew KID's identity for the day the thief told him himself). It was startling to suddenly see him standing here in Shinichi's own house.

"KID! He exclaimed. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

The thief cracked a strained smile that instantly put Shinichi on edge. "My apologies. I did not mean to startle you."

Shinichi gave the thief a long, searching look then turned back to his cabinets to retrieve a pair of mugs. "Would you like some coffee?"

"As long as it comes with sugar and cream."

Shinichi rolled his eyes but complied. His mind raced as he rummaged through the cabinets for the sugar. Something was clearly bothering the thief. Considering that KID was a master actor, the fact that his unease was so clear was, well, actually kind of frightening. But he shouldn't be making wild hypotheses when he had no information to work with. Best let the thief explain it himself.

A few minutes later, they were seated at the kitchen table, each with a mug of coffee in hand. It was KID who broke the silence.

"Tantei-kun, I…"

"Yes?" Shinichi prompted. He had never seen the thief at a loss for words before. It was unnerving. This had to be really, really important.

"I need your help."


	5. Restless Shadows

"You mean you think you've been going out at night but you don't know what you've been doing?"

"I know it sounds crazy, but it's the only explanation I have."

"Have you ever sleep-walked before?"

"No."

"And that night at the heist…"

The thief cracked a lopsided smile. "Can't remember a thing after I looked at the jewel on the roof."

"But then, when you kissed me…"

"Can't remember that either. Wish I could."

"Then why did you pretend you did remember?"

"Because I've liked you for a long time," the thief said with complete seriousness. "I wasn't going to throw away an opportunity to find out if I had a chance with you."

Shinichi's stomach flip-flopped at the blunt admission, and he could feel his face heating up again for the umpteenth time in the thief's presence. But now wasn't the time to get sidetracked by his embarrassment. He was just glad to know that KID was serious about their relationship. For a split second there, he'd been scared that it had all been a mistake.

He picked up his mug and sipped at his coffee to give himself some time to think. Eventually, he set his mug down with a sigh.

"I…have something to tell you too. I don't know if it's related to your memory problem, but…"

"What is it?"

"Well, the girls who were found after your last heist. They woke up today. The police went to interview them, and I got to listen in."

"And?" KID pressed when Shinichi hesitated.

"They…they both say they saw Kaitou KID before they passed out. Or at least someone who was wearing clothes like KID's. But they swear his eyes were glowing orange."

"Well that's weird."

"Yeah…"

"There's something else, isn't there?"

Shinichi took a deep breath. "It's just that, on the roof that night, after you held up the jewel, your eyes changed color." Shinichi described everything he could remember about that night on the roof.

"So you think it really was me those girls ran into?"

Shinichi sighed. "I don't know. None of this makes any sense. You're sure you can't remember anything? Not even now?"

"Not a thing," the thief confirmed. "And believe me, there's nothing normal about that."

Shinichi believed it all right. He just didn't understand it. Every theory that popped into his head was like some crazy Jekyll and Hyde scenario. But that kind of thing couldn't just happen. And what about those eyes?

"Do you have any theories?" he asked.

KID shrugged. "Maybe. Remember that story I told you about the Dragon's Heart?"

"I remember."

"It occurs to me that maybe there was a little more truth to it than either of us suspected."

"…Did you seriously just suggest that that jewel really had a curse on it that's now affecting you?"

"Wouldn't it explain a lot?"

"Well, yeah, except that curses don't exist."

"So people have said about the fountain of youth. And yet you managed to shave off ten years anyway."

Shinichi winced. "Well, okay, but still…"

The thief's lips quirked into a wry smile. "It's that or I've gone crazier than I thought I was."

Shinichi shook his head. "How can you laugh about something like this?"

The thief dropped his smile. "Rest assured, I am taking this very seriously."

They continued talking well into the night, but in the end, all they had concluded was that they needed to do more research.

"I should get going," KID said, watching Shinichi rinse out their cups.

The detective returned with a concerned look on his face. "You can stay the night if you want. I have plenty of guest rooms," he offered.

The thief looked momentarily surprised before a genuine smile curved his lips. He could see that Shinichi was worried, and he knew from looking that Shinichi understood his own concern: that he might end up doing something terrible that he wouldn't even remember. The entire KID task force and every detective who had ever had anything to do with KID should easily be able to imagine just how frightening a criminal the Kaitou KID could be if he ever decided to bend his talents to more sinister ends.

Stepping forward, he picked up both of Shinichi's hands in his own gloved ones.

"I appreciate the offer," he said, lifting the detective's hands to his lips and brushing a kiss across his knuckles. "But I think I'll have to take a rain check." Then, because he just couldn't resist, he leaned forward to steal a kiss from his detective's lips. He was ecstatic when Shinichi shyly kissed him back.

Heading home by hang glider, Kaito lamented the missed opportunity. A sleepover at Tantei-kun's sounded oh so very tempting in oh so many ways. But considering his current circumstances, he didn't entirely trust himself. If he really had developed some strange supernatural split personality, he didn't want to risk letting it near his dear detective.

That didn't stop him from fantasizing about all the different scenarios that might have played out had he been able to spend the night at Shinichi's.

That night, he dreamed of having Shinichi lying naked in his bed, flushed and trembling with need. He dreamed of how he would spread Shinichi's long legs and how it would feel to have those legs wrap around him, pulling him close and encouraging him to slide deeper into Shinichi's tight heat. The sound of the detective's pleasured cries as Kaito thrust into him followed the magician all the way back into the waking world.

Unsurprisingly, he woke with a mess to clean up. It was kind of annoying, but it wasn't the first time he'd had a dream like that about his Shin-chan, and he was sure it wouldn't be the last. Although the dream this night had been the most vivid he'd had yet. Even thinking back on it was causing…problems.

Groaning, Kaito made a beeline for the shower. He had a lot of work to do. He couldn't afford to be getting distracted by daydreams, no matter how pleasant they were. He could just picture Shinichi's unimpressed face if Kaito were to tell him that he hadn't gotten the research he'd said he'd do done because he'd been daydreaming about him.

-0-

"The next KID heist is going to be in Hokkaido," Sonoko squealed. "It's perfect. It's going to take place on Christmas Eve. KID-sama will see me, and he'll wonder how this angel came to be on earth. And then he'll offer me that Snowfall Maiden coronet and tell me that I outshine its beauty."

Shinichi seriously considered bashing his head against his desk. If he was lucky, it would knock him unconscious and he wouldn't have to listen to Sonoko talk anymore. She'd already been going on about this same topic for an hour. She'd started the moment she had sat down with him and Ran for lunch and even the arrival of their food hadn't slowed her down.

He'd found out about the heist only yesterday himself. But KID had invited him personally, and that wasn't the kind of thing that happened every day even to brilliant young detectives. He'd found himself spending way too much time dithering in front of the closet, trying to figure out what to pack for the trip. Then he'd realized he was doing something Sonoko might do, and he'd hurriedly stuffed the first clothes he grabbed into his pack and resolved to forget about the whole incident.

"So were you really able to get a room in the hotel where the heist is taking place?" Ran asked, taking a sip from her iced coffee and trying not to laugh at the disgruntled expression on Shinichi's face. She suspected that hearing Sonoko fantasizing about having an elicit romance with Kaitou KID was making him jealous, but she also suspected that he was unaware of this. Shinichi could be really dense when it came to such things. She blamed the way he always wanted to make things out to be logical. He had a hard time grasping (or maybe just refused to accept) that there were some things that just couldn't be reasoned out, especially when it came to feelings.

She wondered what Sonoko would say if she found out that the famous thief was interested in Shinichi. She would probably freak out. She had only just recently forgiven the detective for not ending up in a relationship with Ran despite both his and Ran's repeated declarations that they weren't in love that way anymore. She would likely see this development between Shinichi and her KID-sama to be a transgression of the highest order. Ran herself had been more than a little taken aback by the idea, but, as she'd told Shinichi, she'd decided that KID was a decent guy—certainly worlds better than most of the people Shinichi met regularly.

"—so you and I can room together, and your dad can room with this geek," Sonoko concluded her story about how tough it had been to get rooms at the hotel after the news that KID would be there had gotten out.

"I'm not sharing with him. I have my own room," Shinichi grumbled.

Sonoko paused in surprise. "You do? Since when? The place was booked solid in like the first day."

"I helped the police solve the note," Shinichi said hastily. He couldn't tell her that KID had booked a room for him. The information about it had arrived on his kitchen table along with the heist notice.

Sonoko's eyes narrowed. "You mean you knew where it was before the news got out and you didn't tell me?"

Oops. "This is the first time I've seen you since the heist was announced."

"You know how to use a phone, don't you? Jeez. For a detective, you can be really stupid sometimes."

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "Well sorry I didn't know that I was obligated to report everything I know to you."

"Now, now," Ran interrupted before Sonoko could respond. "There's no point arguing about this. I mean, we can all go, so there's no problem, right?"

"Whatever," Sonoko grumbled. But she let the issue drop and picked up the dessert menu. "Hey, they have a new type of chocolate cake! Let's try it."

Shinichi finished the last of his pasta and pushed the plate aside. Then he took several books out of his backpack and set them on the table. Opening one to the page he'd bookmarked last night, he began reading. The girls left him in peace until they had finished their cake. It was when they were packing that Ran glanced at the titles of the books Shinichi was reading and paused.

"Are you taking a psychology class this semester?" she asked, surprised.

Shinichi blinked at her in confusion then looked down at his books. "Oh, no, these aren't for class. I'm researching identity related disorders."

"…You mean like split personalities and stuff?" Sonoko asked, eyebrows rising. "Why?"

"It's for a case," he said vaguely.

The petit girl snorted. "Of course. Seriously, you need to start spending less time on those cases of yours. I mean, how are you ever going to get a date if you're always working?"

"Life doesn't revolve around dating," he said dryly.

"It doesn't revolve around dead people either."

"Detectives solve cases for the people who are still alive," Shinichi said quietly. "The people who were left behind. People need closure before they can move on."

There was an awkward silence. It was Ran who broke it.

"Just make sure to be careful and ask for help if you need it," she said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "There's been a lot of strange things going on. I don't want to hear that you got yourself hurt again because you rushed in without thinking."

"Hey there, Tantei-kun. Hard at work as usual, I see."

Shinichi looked up to see the green-eyed young man that was KID's usual disguise for their meetings sliding into the seat across from him. The smile he offered Shinichi made the detective feel warm and rather fuzzy.

Then the thief's gaze landed on the psychology book Shinichi was reading. "Ah. So did your research turn up anything?"

"Nothing helpful," Shinichi replied, sighing. All he had really learned from his research was that there was a lot of controversy over whether multiple personality disorder was even a legitimate concept. And not even the craziest theories would explain all the oddities of the case they were facing now. "What about you?"

"I found a lot of stories. Not sure if they're helpful."

"What kind of stories?"

"The last two owners of the pendant were pretty unremarkable, but the man who had it before that apparently developed a terrible temper soon after he acquired the jewel. Although that was also the time his wife left him, so most people didn't think much of it. What's really odd was that there were six unexplained deaths in the area where he lived. All occurred within the two years that he had the pendant. In each case, the deceased had apparently just dropped dead for no reason. They weren't injured or poisoned. It was generally decided that they must have been ill with something that doctors didn't know about yet. Then the pendant's owner was bitten by a venomous snake and died. There were no more odd deaths after that."

"Was he actually connected to the supposedly ill people?"

"No. I don't think anyone connected him to the deaths even in passing. I only found out about it this time because I was researching current events around the past owners instead of the jewel itself."

"That does sound a lot like what we've seen, although no one's died this time. So maybe it's something different…"

"Maybe. But there was a similar series of incidents even further back. The owner at that time was the heir to a noble family. The jewel was set into the hilt of a sword when he received it. Strangely enough, his father passed away the very day he got it. Again, the cause of death was never uncovered. He then went on to conquer several neighboring lands. He also slew the man that the princess he loved was betrothed to so he could marry her himself. The girls' brother, who disapproved of the match, also died mysteriously."

"That one sounds more like a typical case of someone murdering people he sees as being in his way," Shinichi mused. "But the other…"

"True, and it was so long ago that I can't vouch for the validity of the records, but there were a few scraps of accounts where people said that his eyes burned the color of fire from the day his father died. It could be a poetic turn of phrase, but if it's not, it might be a reference to orange eyes."

"I see." Shinichi frowned down at his books. He felt like they were grasping at straws. He didn't like this feeling.

"Let's go watch a movie."

Shinichi leveled the thief with an incredulous stare. "What?"

"I can tell you've been working yourself into knots over this weirdness, and I've been reading so many old news articles and journals that I see them when I close my eyes. I say we both need a change of pace. So." He rose to his feet and offered Shinichi his hand. "Shall we?"

Twenty minutes later, Shinichi found himself sitting next to Kaito in a darkened theater, glad that the darkness hid the blush that had crept onto his face when the magician's arm had snuck around his waist. The embarrassment didn't stop him from leaning against the magician and wishing they didn't have an armrest between them.


	6. Tremor

It started in the bakery. They had just brought out a tray of freshly baked chocolate chip and banana bread. It smelled divine, and Kaito had already been making his way across the bakery to get a slice when the boy right in front of him placed the last four loaves onto his tray and walked off.

Such greed.

"Hey," Kaito called after him. "Can I have one of those?"

"First come, first serve, Loser," the stranger sneered, looking far too pleased with himself.

Insolent brat.

Kaito dyed the boy's hair pink and turned away, leaving the stranger to wonder why everyone around him was laughing and pointing at his hair. Kaito snickered too, but, on the inside, he scowled.

Dying the guy's hair wasn't what he'd wanted to do. For a fleeting moment, what he'd wanted to do was to teach that greedy little twit some manners.

It was unsettling.

Sure, the guy had been a jerk, but he was just some idiot with an inflated opinion of himself. And the guy's transgression was really just an annoying inconvenience. So why had Kaito felt so angry?

"Kaito?"

He looked up to find Aoko standing in front of him, her face pinched with worry.

"Why are you just standing there?" she asked. "Did you not see anything you liked?"

"Not yet. Why don't you go look for a table first? I'll join you in a minute."

Aoko hesitated then nodded. "All right. Don't take too long."

"I would've thought you'd rather I take a good long while. You know, seeing as it'll give you more time alone with your little blond hanger on."

Aoko blushed then glared. "Honestly, I don't know why I ever waste time worrying about you. Just go pick your food." That said, she stalked past him, muttering under her breath about stupid magicians who never grew up.

Kaito picked a few pastries on autopilot as he mulled over what Aoko had said. She was worried about him. That meant she too had begun to notice that something was wrong. Then again, he shouldn't be surprised. Whatever had happened at the park that other day had clearly shaken her. But she was doing her best not to show while she tried to figure out how to help.

She really was a good friend.

He supposed he could lay off the teasing for one day.

Paying for his purchases, he turned and scanned the bakery. Master thief that he was, he found what he was looking for instantly. It took him only a matter of moments to maneuver through the crowds and plop down in one of the empty seats at Aoko's table. Both the girl and Hakuba looked up from where they had been bent over some papers together, their heads so close they were almost touching.

"Whispering sweet nothings in the middle of a crowded public place?" he quipped, unable to resist.

Both Hakuba and Aoko jerked back in their seats, blushing.

"That's not it at all, Bakaito!" Aoko shouted, face flaming. "We're looking at Keiko-chan's newest designs! Remember, we promised we'd help her and the rest of the fashion club plan their newcomers' debut show! We have to know what they're going to be showing if we want to do it right, especially since we're in charge of making promotional materials."

"Okay, okay, jeez." He flapped a placating hand at her. "Carry on."

The girl shoved a different stack of papers at him. "Here's the information on the venue they'll be using. You're in charge of setting up the stage and arranging the lighting."

"Sure. Piece of cake."

"They want to really amaze people."

He grinned. "Excellent."

"But don't over do it," Hakuba warned. "You don't want to take attention away from the actual stars of the show."

Kaito snorted. "Who do you think you're talking to? I'm not some amateur. Why isn't anyone from the fashion club at this little meeting anyway? It's their show. They should be helping."

"They're out trying to recruit models today," Aoko replied. "And apparently they've set up auditions for any student bands who might want to provide mood music for the show. It's pretty hectic all round."

An hour of working later, Kaito got up to get himself a soda. The moment he was out of earshot, Aoko turned to Hakuba with questioning eyes.

"He seems normal to me," the blond said, frowning slightly. "Was there something in particular you were worried about?"

"I…can't really explain it," the brunette admitted, looking down. "I mean, he does seem normal now, but lately… There are just some times when he gets this weird look in his eyes. And he's been zoning out a lot too."

"Like earlier at the bread shelves."

"Yeah. And did you see his expression?"

"Well, no, I could only see his back."

"He looked…angry. It was kind of scary," she added in a small voice. "I've never seen him like that before."

A warm handed lay itself over hers where it rested on the table. She looked up to meet the blond detective's reassuring gaze.

"I will look into it, I promise. But remember, Kuroba is human too, whatever he'd like the rest of us to believe. And everyone gets angry sometimes."

"I know. But it just didn't look normal."

Hakuba wasn't sure what to say to that since he hadn't actually seen what Aoko had. Fortunately, Kaito chose that moment to return, so they couldn't continue the discussion. But he made a mental note to investigate the issue. He hated seeing Aoko so worried (especially when it was because of that idiotic thief who had lied—was still lying—to her. Taking advantage of her trust in him. Seriously, had he no shame?).

-0-

Humming to herself, Ran made her way through the university bookstore. She had come in search of a study guide for one of her classes, but she wasn't sure where the study guides were in the bookstore yet and the person at the desk had been busy helping other students. So she had decided to just wander around and familiarize herself with the layout for future reference.

Rounding a corner, she spotted a familiar cowlick and smiled. She was about to call out as she approached, but her gaze landed on the book in Shinichi's hands, and her eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"A cookbook for fancy confectionaries?" she blurted out, surprised. Shinichi with a book was commonplace. Shinichi with a cookbook wasn't that strange either. He'd had to learn when his parents left him to fend for himself, and he could cook just fine when he bothered to. But Shinichi with a book about fancy cakes and other desserts? Shinichi had never been a sweets fan, and he already knew how to bake lemon pies, the only sweet he actively yearned for. She couldn't imagine him wanting to put in the time and effort it would take to make extra fancy cakes.

Shinichi jerked around at the sound of his name and instantly blushed pink. That made Ran's eyebrows rise even higher. Sure, it was unexpected, but what was there to be embarrassed about in wanting to learn new cake recipes?

"Ran!" Shinichi reflexively hid the cookbook behind his back, realized the futility, and brought it back out again with a sheepish smile. "How are you?"

"I'm good," she replied. "I was looking for the study guides."

"Oh, they just moved that section. Here, I'll show you where it is."

"Thanks." Ran laughed a little. Trust Shinichi to know where every section was even after the bookstore rearranged things. She fell into step beside him, noting that he had tucked the cookbook under his arm. "So what's with the cookbook?"

"I'm just thinking about learning a few more cake recipes," he said vaguely.

Ran rolled her eyes. "Obviously. But why? You can't expect me to believe you've suddenly developed a sweet tooth."

"Well, no," he admitted. "But a lot of people like sweets."

"Did you have someone particular in mind?"

Shinichi's blush returned. "It's not—I mean, there's just a friend who's been a bit down lately. I was hoping to cheer him up"

Ran blinked then smiled. "That's sweet. I'm glad to hear you're making new friends. Is he a classmate?"

"Someone I met at a case."

Ah. Well, considering the kinds of cases Shinichi usually helped out at, it was no wonder he'd meet lots of upset people.

"Good luck with that," she murmured sympathetically. "Let me know if there's anything I can do."

Shinichi gave her a funny look but nodded. "Here's the study guides."

It only took Ran a few minutes to locate the guide she wanted. Then she and Shinichi checked out and were heading out (Ran to go study and Shinichi to get ingredients from the grocery store) when a young woman in a rather frilly dress suddenly latched onto the karate champion's arm.

"Oh, oh, you!" she squealed in a way that made both Ran and Shinichi jump. "You have to model for us!"

"Wha—what?" Ran stammered.

"I'm with the fashion club. We're having a show. Won't you please model for us?"

"Uh, I'm not su—"

"Please?! I'm begging you! We're like almost completely out of time, and you'd be absolutely perfect! Please?"

Sweat tricked down the back of Ran's neck. "Um, I…guess it wouldn't hurt…"

"Oh thank you!"

And that was how Mouri Ran became one of the models for the fashion club's show. Which, quite naturally, meant Shinichi was forced to attend as well, courtesy of one Suzuki Sonoko.

"What if she's so pretty that she attracts some creep's attention?" she'd argued.

Shinichi might have pointed out that Ran didn't win those championships on some fluke, and she was probably a hell of a lot better at fighting than he was, but he'd long ago learned not to waste his energy trying to argue with Sonoko.

-0-

"Ah! Someone call an ambulance!"

Shinichi almost groaned out loud. Instead, he pushed his way into the greenroom where a crowd was gathering around a young woman collapsed on the floor. He was pleasantly surprised to see that she was still breathing, but her breaths were shallow and labored, so it was too early to rejoice.

"It's gotta be that Sleeping Sickness they've been talking about!" one of the onlookers exclaimed.

"No. It's a severe allergic reaction," Shinichi said, raising his voice to make sure everyone could hear. They didn't need more rumors floating around that would only inspire panic. The girl's face was swelling, and, judging from the sound of her breathing and her breathing was becoming more strained. That ambulance had better come quickly.

Fortunately, the ambulance arrived just in time. The girl's life was not in danger, and she would be back on her feet soon. However, with the good news came some bad news. The allergy had not been a random outbreak or mistake. It had been intentionally triggered.

Someone had applied very thin layers of peanut butter to the bread of the girl's sandwich, disguising the presence of the peanut butter with strong tasting cheeses, pickles, and salami. Because of this discovery, twenty minutes after the show had been scheduled to begin, one of the club members was escorted out of the theater in cuffs, crying about how he hadn't wanted to kill his ex girlfriend. He'd just wanted to give her a scare as payback for dumping him. Or so he kept going on and on about to anyone who would listen.

"The show is ruined!" Keiko wailed, clutching at her pigtails. "When they talk about us in the news tomorrow, it's going to be about how we poison our own members! It's a disaster!"

"Calm down," Aoko told her, trying to inject as much assurance into her voice as she could. "We can still do the show. And if it's good enough, people won't remember the, uh, unfortunate dispute between Miss Rin and Takeru."

"But she was one of our models! And so was he! That inconsiderate jerk! Just because he couldn't take being dumped, he had to go and ruin such an important event for everyone!"

"Well, we have a lot of people here. We can find new models," Aoko hastened to add. "But we'll have to hurry or the audience might leave."

That turned out to be exactly the right thing to say. Keiko was instantly up and running with all cylinders firing at maximum power. "Let's go! Grab anyone who might fit!"

-0-

Situated in the booth at the back of the theater where he could control the lighting, Kaito's jaw almost dropped when the next spotlight he brought on revealed Kudo Shinichi with kitty cat ears. Sure, he'd known that the last few entrants in the show were for the cute and funny outfits, but no one had told him that his Shin-chan would be modeling a cat suit! There was fur and satin and silver highlights—and a tail. Kaito wasn't sure if he should laugh or just stare.

Outside, he could hear some of the audience members murmuring amongst themselves.

"Isn't that Kudo Shinichi?" one boy was asking, stunned.

"You mean that famous detective?" the girl sitting with him asked. "It can't be… There's no way someone like that would wear, well, something like that in public."

"Well, maybe he's secretly into cosplay," her friend countered.

"I don't know. He looks kind of embarrassed. See? He's blushing," the girl argued. Then she giggled. "It's cute."

Kaito had to agree, though he had mixed feelings about the current situation. His eyes followed Shinichi's every move as the detective hurried up and down the catwalk, clearly eager to get the whole ordeal over with as quickly as possible. That adorable blush was growing darker with every second. Yet despite Shinichi's obvious discomfort, he still managed to move with all the poise and grace of a well-coordinated athlete. The magician couldn't tear his gaze away. Suddenly, the booth felt too small and the air a little too warm.

He was half relieved and half disappointed when Shinichi finally disappeared off the stage.

Then Hakuba was pushed out onto the stage in a caveman costume, and Kaito fell out of his chair laughing.


	7. Overcast

Kaito stared into his reflection as he brushed his teeth, searching his own eyes for any trace of orange. He saw nothing but the familiar indigo shade he'd inherited from his father, but it didn't make him feel any better.

And the morning had started out so well too.

He'd woken early as he always did from a nice dream where he had been having dinner with Shinichi at the Kudo Manor. The food had been delicious, and the detective's kitty ears had been adorable. They had talked, though he couldn't remember what about. All he could recall was that beautiful smile and those lovely blue eyes. It had been a truly perfect moment.

Then the meal had ended, and the dishes had vanished, presumably cleared away. Shinichi had then poured them each a cup of coffee while asking Kaito if he wanted anything else. Unable to resist, the thief had pulled Shinichi down onto his lap while relieving the detective of the hot coffeepot. Setting the pot on the table, he'd wrapped his arms loosely around Shinichi's waist.

"How about some dessert?"

"I baked a cake," Shinichi offered. "Should I go get it?"

"Actually," Kaito murmured, hands sliding up Shinichi's thighs to rest on his hips. "I'd much rather have you."

Shinichi blushed. "If…if that's what you want…" He shifted around so that he was now straddling Kaito's lap and peered at him shyly. "I think I'd like that too."

Dessert tasted of coffee and honey and sweet little mewling cries that only whet Kaito's appetite for more.

Rinsing the toothpaste from his mouth, Kaito dragged a comb through his wild hair (not that it made a lick of difference) and headed out of the bathroom. It really had been an enjoyable dream, and he would have been in a good mood—if not for the fresh leaves he'd found on his bedroom floor. Of course there was always the chance that they didn't mean anything. These leaves were common. They could have blown in through his window. He'd had it open the previous evening when he'd been training his doves. But still… Those leaves were an unpleasant reminder of the problem at hand.

-0-

Shinichi stifled a yawn and settled further back in his seat. The train hummed all around him as it raced down its rails, leaving Tokyo farther and farther behind.

An eruption of loud squealing from behind him made him wince. He was not at all surprised to recognize Sonoko's voice among the squeals. She had, after all, run into another large group of KID fans. Apparently, they were members of the fan club she headed. Now the girls were all back there going gaga over video recordings of the thief's past heists. It turned out one of the girls had almost every heist since KID's return recorded and loaded on her laptop. Shinichi thought he might even have overheard her saying something about putting together a commemorative video of the thief's greatest moments. The whole group of fans had heartily approved of the idea and were now helping her select footage. Or at least that was what they had claimed to be doing. As far as he could tell, they were just gushing over KID like he was god.

Shinichi grimaced. Honestly, fanatics of all kinds were just plain terrifying. Didn't they have anything better to do with their lives than daydreaming about being swept off their feet by a criminal?

Not, he had to grudgingly admit, that he had a whole lot of ground to stand on… He'd done his fair share of daydreaming too recently, but that was different. After all, he knew the thief personally, and they were dating, even if it was secretly. So, on some levels, it would be stranger for him not to have at least a daydream or two.

Feeling himself beginning to blush, he hurriedly turned his attention back to the passengers around him. They weren't as helpful a distraction as he had hoped though. The train was full of KID fans, though luckily the rest were much less crazy than Sonoko and her fellow fanatics. There were several families with excited children discussing what kind of show the magician thief might put on this time and magic fans showing off little tricks to one another and discussing what kind of show they would put on if they were KID. Then there were the reporters, the teens out for a good time, and—was that Satou and Takagi-keiji?

Shinichi stared. The two were dressed in a manner that suggested they were keeping a low profile, but they weren't actually in disguise, and it was definitely them. Well, he thought, amused. Satou was a KID fan. He just hadn't expected her to be enough of a fan to want to travel all the way to Hokkaido to watch a heist. Although it was Christmas, so maybe the heist was just a good opportunity for her and Takagi to get out and spend some well-deserved time together away from the envious eyes of their colleagues.

"Is this seat taken?"

Shinichi's head whipped around so fast that he nearly gave himself whiplash. "K—!"

A hand clamped itself over his mouth. "Hush. Some people are sleeping. You don't want to bother them, do you?"

Embarrassed at his own almost-slip, Shinichi nodded. The hand was removed, and the young man gestured again at the two empty seats next to Shinichi's which were occupied by Ran and Sonoko's things respectively.

"My friends are sitting there," Shinichi admitted, "but you can probably use the seats for now. I doubt they'll be back anytime soon." After all, Sonoko was in the middle of fangirling over KID behind them, and Ran had gone somewhere quiet to make some phone calls (she hadn't specified, but he suspected she was planning something to try and get her parents together again. Kogoro was on the train too, but he'd been in the dining car since they'd boarded).

"Thank you." The thief sat down. "You can call me Koji," he added, surprising Shinichi. Though the thief had been using this disguise ever since they'd met at the Halloween party, he'd never bothered giving the character a name. "I thought I might see you here. You're going to the Suzukis' Christmas Ball too, right?"

"I am," Shinichi agreed, quickly sorting out how he was supposed to behave. It seemed the thief intended them to be casual acquaintances right now, which made sense as they had been seen together at the party and the café.

"I wasn't sure about going because most of my friends are out of the country this winter. I was going to give my ticket to one of my cousins," Koji explained then smiled. "But I'm glad I changed my mind, since it means we get to spend more time together."

Shinichi was torn between rolling his eyes and blushing.

They chatted for a while, though it was mostly the thief building back stories for his current persona.

In the midst of their conversation, Shinichi slipped a packet of papers to Koji.

"I remember you said you were interested in other legends related to that dragon jewel," he said on the off chance someone was listening in. "You can try reading this. It includes some stories you might not have read before."

"Cool." Though his tone was light, the magician's eyes had become serious. "I'll be sure to read it."

"So who was that you were talking to on the train?" Ran asked. The two of them were in the lobby of their hotel, waiting for Sonoko to finish checking in for herself and the Mouris. It was taking a while because the staff recognized her as a member of the family that owned their hotel.

"His name is Koji," Shinichi replied, hoping Ran didn't notice his moment of hesitation. "I met him at that Halloween party."

"I take it he's a KID fan then?" Ran asked, correctly guessing that the other was also here for the next heist.

Shinichi suppressed the urge to snort in laughter at the irony of the question. "Yeah."

Sonoko chose that moment to rejoin them. "Here you go," she said, handing Ran a key card. "Now let's hurry or we won't have time to get ready."

"Get ready for what?" Ran asked, confused.

The shorter girl grinned. "The party, of course! They have a whole bunch of them planned for the next two weeks, and we're invited. You too," she added, glancing at Shinichi. "Here's the schedule."

Shinichi looked at the paper Sonoko had just handed him and had to suppress a groan. He felt exhausted just looking at everything packed into the schedule. The coming holiday was beginning to look like the exact opposite of a relaxing getaway.


	8. Rumble of Thunder

Shinichi looked around his hotel room. It wasn't the largest hotel room he'd ever stayed in, but it was clean and elegant. There was a beautiful landscape painting on the wall, and the view through the massive windows was breathtaking.

Shinichi wondered whether Kaito had booked another room for himself or if he had planned for them to room together. The detective couldn't help but notice that there was only one king-sized bed. If they were rooming together...

He found himself wondering whether KID had plans for this vacation other than his heist.

Heat climbed up into Shinichi's cheeks, and he hurried to put his luggage away. He had ended up bringing more clothes than he'd intended. Then again, anyone who attended KID heists regularly knew the importance of having spare clothes ready. That, and he'd been informed that he had better have formal party clothes ready if he didn't want Sonoko to strangle him.

When he was done unpacking, he checked the clock. He still had half an hour before he had to meet up with Ran and Sonoko again. He sat down on the edge of the bed. His thoughts wandered back to the question about sleeping arrangements, which naturally led back to his wonderings about a certain magician thief's intentions.

The thought sent a pang of both panic and anticipation through Shinichi. Was he ready for something like that? They hadn't exactly been dating for what he would consider a decent amount of time, but they had known each other for many years. Long enough for Shinichi to be fairly sure that he felt seriously about this relationship. On the other hand, KID had yet to even formally introduce himself. Did that mean that the thief didn't trust him yet?

That thought made Shinichi feel abruptly cold. But, thinking back over the thief's behavior, he decided that the thief was serious about this too like he'd claimed. The thief was just a cautious person—rightfully so. Still, it would be nice to be able to be sure…

-0-

Kaito sipped slowly at the cola he'd bought as he read through the documents Shinichi had given him. He was sitting in one of the hotel's restaurants. He'd finished his sandwich some time ago—the same time he'd finished reading the documents for the first time. He was now on his third rereading. It wasn't really necessary. His memory was impeccable. The problem was that the story was both stranger than he'd anticipated and rather more simple than he'd imagined.

The information Shinichi had given him revolved around two instances when the Dragon's Heart had purportedly been destroyed and a few more less concrete instances when it had been 'lost'. Of the more substantial stories, the first told how one owner of the jewel, a gold merchant, had been shot by robbers. The bullet had, in true drama fashion, hit the jewel pendant instead of the merchant's heart, saving his life but shattering in the process.

Or at least the assistant who had witnessed the incident had claimed to have seen the cracked jewel. The strange thing was that, the following day, the same assistant had seen the pendant again—whole and unmarred. The general opinion was that the assistant had just been mistaken. Even the merchant had claimed as much. The incident, therefore, passed without receiving much attention.

The second incident was a lot less dramatic. It involved a man who'd gotten a hold of the jewel illegally and decided to cut it in order to make it easier to hide. He had cut it, let it in his safe overnight, then found that it had miraculously restored itself to its former shape the following morning. Two more tries later, he got scared, believing it some kind of haunting, and turned himself in.

The other incidents all spoke of occasions when the gem was thought to be lost. It had been on a ship that sank. A fisherman's daughter found it on the seashore. The jewel was only recognized years later because it apparently matched a photograph taken of it before the ship had sunk. And that was only the tip of the iceberg.

For the most part, the tales struck Kaito as trivial, but Shinichi wouldn't have given him the information if he thought it was trivial. So what was Shinichi trying to tell him with these?

A beep from his watch alerted Kaito to the time. He sighed, finishing off his soda.

There was time for the stories later. Right now, he had a party to attend. A party that was going to be full of potential backup disguises for his upcoming heist. Time to do some research.

-0-

"You can at least pretend you're happy to be here."

Shinichi glared over the rim of his coffee mug at Sonoko. He didn't bother saying anything. After all, he had just endured a two hour formal dinner during which he had to be impeccably polite while fending off overly curious questions from a bunch of aristocrats all eager to interrogate him about his 'years away', apparently under the impression that they should be exempt from any restrictions in regards to the confidential parts of the case. Those, however, had at least been better than the people who'd obviously believed he was some kind of fraud riding on his parents' fame to get attention. That lot had apparently decided that his refusal to talk about his absent years was due to some great, secret shame over some big failures in his detective work. How that story had gotten started, he neither knew nor cared, but having to endure their snide comments all through dinner had been exhausting.

And now that the dinner was over, he was not pleased to discover that his attendance at the dance party afterward was not optional. The least they could do was allow him to drink his coffee in peace in a nice quiet corner.

But no~.

"You owe Ran at least one dance," Sonoko informed him, crossing her arms. "For all that time you made her worry about you."

Shinichi sighed. It wasn't that he had anything against dancing with Ran. But he knew that Sonoko still thought he and Ran should get together, and she was always on the lookout for any signs that she was right. He didn't want to give her any ammunition to begin her matchmaking schemes again.

"Actually," Ran said. "That guy over there asked me for a dance earlier at dinner."

"What? Who?" Whirling around, Sonoko stared then shrieked. "No way! You stay away from that guy! He's the Arimas' second son, and he's a real player. He's one of those guys who thinks anyone he wants should be honored to sleep with him. His parents aren't sure what to do with him. He's even been arrested a few times for brawling while drunk. I think he would have been disowned already if he wasn't such a wiz at marketing when he's sober."

Taken aback, Ran could only nod mutely. The young man in question had been charming when she'd spoken to him. It was startling to learn he hadn't been the smart, handsome young businessman he'd presented himself as. They'd only had one conversation, but she'd actually kind of liked him. No wonder he was a good marketing agent. At the same time, the discovery was kind of depressing.

Sometimes, it felt like you really couldn't trust anyone anymore. Maybe it was because she was surrounded by detectives and police officers, but it often seemed like every other person she met was either a blackmailer, a murderer, or some other kind of criminal. She felt sorry for thinking it, but one thing she was growing more and more sure of was that she did not want her future partner to be a member of law enforcement. Detectives and police did important work, and they were generally great people with good intentions, but she didn't think she could stand living her entire life having to worry about the people she loved getting hurt chasing criminals. She didn't want to see crime around every corner and have to question the sincerity of everyone she met.

Was she being a disloyal friend? She should at least be supportive, but it was hard to be supportive of your friend's hobbies when those hobbies regularly landed said friend in the hospital.

"Ran? What's wrong?"

Looking around, she found both Shinichi and Sonoko looking at her with concern. She forced a smile onto her face. "Sorry. I was just thinking."

Her two friends traded looks.

"If you're not feeling well," Sonoko began.

"No, no, really," she insisted. When her friend didn't look appeased, she gave in. "I guess finding somewhere to sit for a while would be nice."

"There are chairs this way. Oi, detective geek! Go get Ran a drink."

Shinichi might have commented on Sonoko and her tendency to boss him around, but concern for his childhood friend had him walking away in search of beverages.

Ran let Sonoko guide her to a chair before insisting that her friend go enjoy the rest of the party. It took some persuading, but eventually Sonoko consented, promising that they would leave as soon as they could politely do so.

Taking a small plate of fancy little cakes from a passing waiter, Ran settled down for a little respite from the hubbub of the party. Lost in her own thoughts, she was surprised when someone cleared his throat beside her. She turned to see a smartly dressed young man.

"Good evening," he said with a shy smile. "I was wondering, might I trouble you for a dance?"

-0-

Shinichi frowned as he scanned the seating areas around the ballroom.

He had gotten Ran her drink, but now he couldn't find her. The girl wasn't sitting at any of the tables or other rest areas in any of the series of ballrooms being used for the party. He had checked them all already three times. So either she had ditched him and left already, or she had decided she felt better and gone back to rejoin the festivities. After all, even a detective couldn't be expected to pick out one girl out of the contorting, colorful masses at a glance. Either way, it left him at a loss as to what to do with this cup of ginger ale he was carrying around for her. He could drink it himself, but it was a little sweet for his tastes.

"Stop!" a girl's voice said, shrill with fear.

Shinichi turned around immediately. It didn't take long for his detective-honed senses to locate the problem.

A man, the very one Sonoko had warned them about, was leaning over one of the serving girls. Her tray was empty, and she was holding it in front of her like a shield, but he had her backed into a corner where she couldn't escape.

"Come on," he was saying in a wheedling tone. "It's a party. Don't you want to enjoy yourself a little?"

Not liking the way this was going, Shinichi marched up to the pair.

"Excuse me," he said.

The man, clearly drunk beyond reasoning, didn't even bother to look at him. "Beat it. We're busy."

"Sir. You're drunk," Shinichi said bluntly, undeterred by the fact that the guy was more than a head taller than he was. "You should leave before you embarrass yourself further."

"What?! Who the hell do you think you are?" he snarled then had to lean against the wall for support. He looked like he was going to throw up.

Now a little worried, Shinichi pushed the girl behind him and approached the drunk carefully. "Do you need help?"

Dark eyes locked onto his bright blue ones. Though they were unfocused, somehow managed to leer. "You know, you're pretty cute. Didn't notice before."

Shinichi twitched. "Excuse me?"

The drunk leaned over him, and Shinichi could smell the rancid odor of alcohol on his breath as he spoke. "I'll forget about that wench if you and me go get a room instead."

Shinichi flushed in anger. The alcohol was obviously making the guy stupid. Deciding the creep wasn't worth wasting any more of his time with, he turned to the quivering waitress.

"Come on, let's go."

A hand seized Shinichi's shoulder, jerking him back. "No one ignores me!"

"Let go," Shinichi said coldly.

The man sneered. "Not 'ntil you 'pologize." His grip tightened on, squeezing hard enough to hurt.

Shinichi scowled, but before he could say anything, a hand closed around the drunk's wrist. The man let out an abrupt cry of pain and released Shinichi, jerking back. Shinichi too jumped, spilling ginger ale all over himself. His eyes widened when he saw what looked like burn on the drunk's wrist. Both he and the drunk turned to the newcomer, one in rage and one in shock.

"Ka—Koji," Shinichi gasped. "What did you—" he started to say then stopped. Kaito was still wearing colored contacts, but his eyes had turned orange—the color seeming to burn right through the contacts. And the cold fury on his face… It made him look like a completely different person.

"You bastard!" the drunk snarled, drawing back his fist.

Clang!

Both Shinichi and Kaito could only stare as the drunk keeled over unconscious. Standing behind him was the waitress with her serving tray held up high. She stared down at her handiwork then clutched the tray to her again, stammering.

"I—I'm sorry."

"It's all right," Shinichi said, recovering from his shock.

"Yeah. He was asking for that," Kaito added.

Shinichi cast the magician a sidelong look. Kaito looked normal again, he was relieved to see, but he couldn't help but notice the tiny hint of strain to the magician's smile. For Kaito, that said a lot.

The waitress smiled weakly. "Um, I'm not really sure…" She looked down at the unconscious body.

"Don't worry," said Shinichi. "We'll call someone. You go on."

"Thank you." She bowed and hurried away.

"Can you see about getting someone to take him back to his room?" the detective continued, turning back to Kaito. "I'll stay here to keep an eye on him."

"I'd rather you go and let me watch him," the magician said frankly, giving the heap of drunk a disdainful look. "If he wakes up, I'll gas him."

Shinichi hesitated a moment, uncertain as to whether it was wise to leave Kaito to watch the guy. He still remembered that look Kaito had been wearing earlier. It had been…kind of terrifying. And those burns… But he didn't want to waste time arguing about it. The sooner they got out of here, the sooner they could talk.

"All right. I'll be right back."


	9. Branching Out

"How are you feeling?"

"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?" Kaito asked lightly, though his expression was serious as he looked Shinichi over from head to toe.

"He only grabbed my shoulder," Shinichi explained, though he found himself feeling touched at the magician's open show of concern. Still. That wasn't what they were here to talk about.

"Your hand," he said finally. "Can I see it?"

He didn't miss Kaito's moment of hesitation before the magician extended his hand. "Go ahead."

Gingerly taking the magician's outstretched hand in both his own, Shinichi examined it closely. The magician's hand was calloused from years of nonstop practice with his many gadgets and other props. He had strong, nimble fingers well suited to his trade. But though the hand clearly belonged to a very active person, it showed no signs of being anything strange. The temperature of his skin was normal, and there was no sign of any trick that might be able to induce burns (not that Shinichi believed Kaito would have set up a trick to hurt someone like that on purpose, but it was a detective's job to consider all the possibilities). Nor was the hand itself burned. But Shinichi knew what he had seen.

"Does anything feel strange to you?" he asked, still studying the magician's hand. "Is there any pain?"

"I'm fine," Kaito insisted. Catching one of Shinichi's hands with his own, he pulled it up and brushed a kiss across the detective's knuckles. "Really."

Shinichi blushed, hurriedly tugging his hand out of the other's grasp. "I'm being serious here. Do you remember everything that happened just now?"

Kaito's grin faded as his eyes grew serious. "I do. And no, I don't know how he got those burns. I'm sorry."

Shinichi sighed. "You don't have to apologize. But, well, I noticed you didn't seem surprised…?"

Kaito grimaced. "At the time, I wasn't. It's…a little difficult to describe. I…" He scowled, frustrated by his own peculiar ineloquence. He was usually good with words, but how did you go about telling someone that you hadn't been yourself and yet you had been at the same time? It sounded nonsensical even in his own head. He thought sardonically that maybe this was all those years of laughing when people called him crazy coming back to bite him.

Pale hands came to rest on his shoulders, and he looked up into Shinichi's earnest sapphire gaze. "It's okay. We'll figure it out."

Kaito smiled. "You're right." Leaning forward quickly, he stole a kiss from the startled detective's soft lips and drew back. "Thanks."

The detective's cheeks went pink. Kaito smiled. Shinichi turned away, trying not to fidget. He was suddenly very aware of the fact that he and Kaito were alone, and he still didn't know where the thief was planning to stay the night. He wanted to ask, but at the same time he didn't want to ask.

"Um, I brought something for you," he said hastily in an attempt to distract himself and, hopefully, lighten the mood at the same time. "I'll go get it."

Kaito watched in mounting curiosity as Shinichi opened the hotel refrigerator door and pulled out a box. The detective then carried the box to the hotel's round table and set it down. When the box opened, it revealed a chocolate cake. A homemade chocolate cake with "To the Future" written on it in carefully icing-ed letters.

Kaito stared. Flashes of his dream from the other night rose up unbidden in his thoughts, and, for the first time in years, he felt his face beginning to turn red.

Fortunately, Shinichi was still fussing over the cake. By the time he looked up again, Kaito had already gotten his expression—if not his thoughts—under control.

"It was my first time baking with this recipe," he was saying. "But I think it turned out okay. And I thought, well, you've been feeling a bit stressed out about all this. And I just wanted to…" He cut himself off because he knew he was babbling. "Um, so…did you want some? I know we just came from the party, but—"

"I'd love to have some cake," Kaito said, cutting him off. "I didn't have the opportunity to enjoy the snacks they were offering at the party. So this is perfect."

"It might not taste very good," Shinichi warned. But he cut two neat slices out of the cake and placed them on the paper plates he had brought with him.

It wasn't the best cake Kaito had ever had, but, he decided, it was still one of his favorites.

He got seconds once he was done, though Shinichi ate only one slice. Then, together, they sat on the bed and turned on the television to see two reporters discussing the upcoming KID heist. Kaito grinned when he saw them. He always did love hearing people talk about him and his daring exploits. Both reporters were female too and clearly fans. They were both gushing over what a perfect time of the year it was for one of KID's unforgettable shows.

"You know, I'm starting to think you're a narcissist," Shinichi commented dryly from over the top of his coffee cup. He had poured the cup after his cake and hadn't let go of it since.

Kaito only laughed. "Nothing wrong with knowing that you're awesome." But he flipped to a different channel where a holiday movie was just starting. Then he tossed the remote behind them and looped an arm around Shinichi's waist, pulling the detective flush against his side.

Shinichi buried his nose in his cup to hide his blush, but he leaned into the half embrace, feeling warm and content. With the evening as hectic as it had been, the detective hadn't realized just how tired he really was. A mere ten minutes into the movie, he had already fallen asleep with his head on Kaito's shoulder as he snuggled up more firmly against the magician's side.

Kaito looked down at the detective's slumbering face and smiled, running his fingers through the soft, black hair.

Mine.

The word whispered in his head, and, for a moment, he almost thought he heard an echo of it from somewhere in the back of his mind as though someone else was thinking inside his head. He frowned, shaking away the odd sensation.

Carefully extracting Shinichi's empty coffee cup from his limp hands, Kaito leaned over to put the cup on the hotel table. Then he gathered Shinichi onto his lap and settled down to finish the movie.

-0-

Shinichi woke to find the suite empty. There was a note on the table from Kaito.

"I have a few preparations to attend to," he read out loud from the notepad. "I'll see you at the show."

Shinichi smiled and folded up the note before tucking it into one of the nightstand drawers. After that, he went through his morning ablutions, pulled on more casual clothes, and headed out in search of Ran. After all, he really should check up on her too after her disappearance last night.

It turned out that Ran was pretty easy to find. She was sitting on one of the soft couches in the hotel breakfast lounge. She had a plate of pancakes on the table before her and a bottle of syrup. There was an empty seat across from her that she kept looking at, but Shinichi didn't see Sonoko anywhere in the area.

"Ran?" he said by way of greeting as he approached her table. "I was looking for you last night at the party. Did you go back to your room early?"

She started when she heard his voice then looked up with an apologetic smile. "Oh, no, no. Actually, I met this guy, and he asked me to dance. I'm sorry I didn't say anything to you."

"It's okay," he said after a moment's thought. Judging from Ran's flustered behavior, this was starting to sound…like the beginning of a relationship.

He frowned. He had nothing against Ran dating. Not anymore anyway. But he wasn't going to let his best friend go out with any random man. There were far too many crazy people out there these days for that. Then he looked at the empty chair again.

"Are you meeting him for breakfast?"

Ran blushed, started to stammer a denial, then deflated and nodded. "We ran into each other in the hallway this morning, and he asked if I'd eaten yet. Since I hadn't…"

That made sense, Shinichi noted. "Then why isn't he here?"

"He's going to exchange his order. He forgot to tell them that he's allergic to cheese, so he needs them to get him the omelet without the cheese."

"Ah, I see." That sounded reasonable too. He looked at Ran again, wondering how to ask if he could join the two for breakfast without making it overly obvious that he wanted to cross examine her new friend.

He was saved from having to do so by a young man coming to the table and sitting down across from Ran. The boy was probably in college, Shinichi decided. Older than Ran, but not by much. He looked to be of mixed Asian and Caucasian descent. His clothes were plain but clearly of high quality.

The newcomer looked up then and spotted Shinichi. His eyes lit up in delight—something that probably meant he wasn't a wanted criminal in hiding.

"You're Kudo Shinichi, right?" he asked. "Ran's told me a lot about you. I'm Luke Suzuhara—oops, I mean Suzuhara Luke."

"It's nice to meet you," Shinichi replied politely, taking a seat. "I take it you're from overseas?"

"Yeah. My parents moved to America when I was in high school, but I decided to come back for graduate school."

"He's studying medicine in Tokyo," Ran supplied, although she was giving Shinichi a distinctly warning look.

"So what brings you here to Hokkaido?" the detective asked, curious.

"One of my classmates invited me and several of our friends. She and her fiancé are getting married here next year. She wanted to come see the facilities in person beforehand. And since it's the holidays, we all decided to make a vacation out of it. What about you? Mouri-san said you came here on a case, right?"

Shinichi stared at him then looked at Ran. "You mean you haven't heard of the KID heist?"

The med student looked blank. "KID?"

"Kaitou KID," Ran explained. "He's having a heist here on Christmas Eve. My other friend is a big fan, so she came to watch."

"Wait. I don't understand. Watch? But a heist means he's stealing something, isn't he?"

Ran looked just as surprised as Shinichi felt. "You mean you really don't know?"

"Know what?"

"Well, KID is a thief, but he's also a magician. A lot of people really love his magic shows. He's actually really famous."

"Oh! I heard people talking about a magician. I didn't realize they were talking about a thief." Suzuhara shook his head. "I'm not sure I understand, but good luck with your work," he said, nodding to Shinichi. "I guess I should watch the news more. It's just there's always so much negativity in the news that I, well…" He shrugged, looking sheepish.

Ran sighed. "I know what you mean."

The conversation lulled as a waitress came by with a replacement order for Suzuhara that didn't contain cheese. Shinichi ordered a cup of coffee and, under Ran's pointed look, pancakes. Honestly, she often acted more like his mother than his real mother ever did. He didn't really mind (had sort of gotten used to it after being a child in her care for a few years), but it was a little embarrassing sometimes too. After all, he wasn't seven anymore. On the bright side, they had company to distract her this morning.

Speaking of company, he supposed this young man didn't seem too bad. He appeared to be a nice, ordinary person with decent prospects and an open disposition. Still, Shinichi decided to reserve judgment. He had seen far too many people who appeared to be nice and turned out to be rotten. Deep down though, he found he hoped the guy really was sincere. Ran deserved to find someone nice, and maybe then Sonoko would get off his back.


	10. The Dragon's Wrath

"You're okay with this?"

Shinichi, who had his nose buried in the pages of an anthology of mystery short fiction, didn't bother looking up. "Okay with what?"

Sonoko scowled, planting her hands on her hips and glaring at him. The gesture didn't have the affect she'd hoped for, seeing as he still wasn't looking at her. If anything, she felt silly standing there and glaring down at the top of the head of a boy who was clearly not paying attention to her. That thought only made her scowl deepen, but she opted for crossing her arms and plopping down into one of the other chairs at the table.

They were currently in the coffee shop situated off to the side of the hotel lobby. They had spent the majority of the day exploring the city—they being her, Ran, Shinichi, and Ran's new friend, Suzuhara. The new guy had treated them all to dinner. They had gotten back to the hotel shortly before eight and were now waiting with the rest of the increasing number of guests for Kaitou KID's heist to begin. Most of the people present were wandering the lower levels of the hotel to admire the artwork being exhibited. Being Christmas, the exhibit had a very festive, holiday theme, and the art was interspersed with little Christmas trees and wreaths and lots and lots of lights. Even without any priceless artwork or jewelry on display, it would have been a beautiful place to wander. And so wander everyone did. With the heist drawing closer, however, more and more people were gravitating to the main lobby where a giant of a Christmas tree towered two stories high. The police were beginning to clear the ground floor, so the balconies around the lobby on the second floor were crowded. All eyes were trained on the sparkling tree and the sculpted angel standing amidst the large, decorative gifts at its feet. The angel was holding a glass case in which the Snowfall Maiden Coronet rested on a velvet cushion.

The coronet was beautiful, all silver and diamonds with three very large moonstones set into it. It had once belonged to a princess, Kaito had told him a few days ago. She had been born in the remote north, but she had caught the eye of a passing lord who asked her to be his bride. He gave her this coronet on their wedding day, saying that the three moonstones represented the love he had for her kindness, her beauty, and her spirit which could inspire all those around her to dream even in the cold, snowbound lands of her birthplace. The stories claimed that it was a beautiful union, and from the day the two wed, they lived happily ever after.

The magician had thought the story a little bland. What had interested him was the bit at the end of the story that claimed that, for all seventy years of her life, the girl's beauty remained unchanged. Sonoko had declared that the tale was romantic. Shinichi didn't think he understood what it really meant for a story to be romantic, but he supposed he could see a little of it in any relationship that worked well enough to last.

"If you don't do something," Sonoko started again, this time her voice much more serious. "I think they might really start dating. Ran really likes him. I'm sure even you can tell. And he's definitely interested in her too. Doesn't it bother you?"

Knowing that Sonoko wouldn't be letting the issue go, Shinichi shut his magazine and picked up his coffee. He took a long sip of it before answering. "It doesn't bother me. You might not believe me, but it really doesn't. And this guy seems nice."

"But what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Don't you want Ran back?"

Shinichi sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you, Ran and I just don't like each other that way."

"You can't expect me to believe you never had feelings for her," Sonoko snapped.

Shinichi sighed again. This conversation really was getting old. "Things change. People change. Go ask Ran if you won't believe me."

"I did," the girl grumbled. "I just couldn't believe it. But now…" She looked to the next table over where Ran and Suzuhara were exchanging email addresses and talking about their favorite restaurants. Seeing that…she thought she could finally begin to believe them.

She didn't know how she felt about that.

While she was happy for Ran, she found herself just a teeny tiny bit, well, concerned, she supposed, for lack of a better word. Shinichi wasn't her best friend like Ran was, but he was still a friend she'd known for pretty much forever. Kind of like an annoying brother, she supposed.

Shinichi raised his eyebrows at the petit girl across from him. Deep thought was not an expression he was accustomed to seeing on Sonoko's face. Usually, she oscillated between bright obliviousness, obsessed fanaticism, and a kind of harmless evil. Having her scrutinize him with a, dare he say, concerned frown was creeping him out. Considering the kinds of things Sonoko liked to occupy herself with, he would much prefer she ignore him.

And he knew just the thing to distract her with.

"The heist should be starting soon," he said, pointing to the clock on the wall. "It's five minutes to ten."

Sonoko immediately leapt from her seat. "Ah! I have to find a better spot! We won't be able to see anything from in here." And she gone.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Shinichi drained the last of his coffee from his cup and stood. He wasn't planning on joining the chase tonight (it was far too crowded and his thoughts were occupied with other things, namely the issue of KID's possible split personality problem and its possible connection to the sleeping sickness going around), but he was curious what KID had in store for his fans.

He paused on his way out of the coffee shop to take one last look at where Ran was laughing at something Suzuhara had said. Should he tell them the heist was about to start? He debated it with himself for a while before eventually deciding against it.

Part of him still wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of Ran spending so much time with a guy she'd just met, but, well, this was a public place with lots of people around. There would be time to run a background check on the guy later.

-0-

The clock struck ten.

Instantly, snow began falling from the ceiling. This in itself was not enough to amaze Shinichi, though it did make most of the audience gasp and laugh. What did amaze Shinichi was the way the snow fell and fell and, gradually, built three snowmen around the angel statue. The snowflakes simply fell into place like there was an invisible mold to form three snowmen, each with the typical three spherical segments and even a pointy nose, snow scarves, and snow top hats. Many people were beginning to clap, and more than half the audience had their phones out, recording the demonstration of the Moonlit Magician's magic at work.

Then the tallest snowman abruptly split down the middle. The two halves fell away, and out stepped Kaitou KID.

It was among the exclamations of surprise and Nakamori's bellows that Shinichi saw a young man in a nondescript gray sweater slipping out through a side door of the lobby. With his internal crime radar ringing, Shinichi slipped after the man, though he was careful to keep his distance.

The man wove his way through the many art exhibits in the hotel all the way to one situated almost at the far end of the hotel from where KID was holding his show. Here, a large, glass display case housed a series of pendants, each encrusted with large sapphires, emeralds, rubies, and more. Two either side of the display case stood a series of tall vases also gilded in gold and encrusted with precious stones. The design of both vases and jewelry appeared to be of a similar style, though Shinichi was much more focused on the man waiting in front of this case full of fancy and likely extremely expensive jewelry. The man was big and dressed in a heavy coat with a hat pulled low over his face.

"Where were you?" the big man snapped.

"Hey, hey, chill," the guy Shinichi had been tailing said, holding up his hands in a placating gesture. "I just got caught in the crowd when I passed through the lobby. I felt it was better to wait until everyone had their attention on KID before I left. Ya know, just in case someone saw me."

The big man grunted, unimpressed. "That's why you're a whole half hour late?"

"Oh come on, don't be like that. It was a pretty cool show. If I could do all that stuff KID does, I'd be in Las Vegas, raking in the cash with my name in lights and everything."

"I don't care about your dreams of being famous. Now shut up and do your job if you want to get paid."

"Yeah, yeah." The man who wanted to be famous pulled a pair of gloves out of his pocket and put them on. Then he produced a small machine from the pack he'd been carrying and crouched to attach it to what Shinichi assumed was the digital locking system on the display case. He whistle. "Pretty fancy."

"Can you open it?"

"Yeah. But it's going to take a little bit of time."

"Hurry up. You've wasted enough time already."

Clearly irritated, the big man shifted his weight and looked around. Shinichi shrank further back into his hiding place behind a well-decorated Christmas tree.

Seeing nothing, the big man snorted and shifted again. "You done yet?"

"Almost," the man who wanted to be famous replied, humming. "Just this and this and… Oh, well, that worked well. It's open."

"Good." The big man smiled.

And that was when all hell broke loose because the big man had a gun. He pulled it out of his coat and aimed it straight at the back of his accomplice's head.

Seeing the action and knowing what would come next, Shinichi launched himself down the hall and right at the big man, grabbing for his gun arm.

The man who wanted to be famous, sensing the commotion, turned around and gaped. Though lax about time, he was not an idiot, and he knew instantly what had been about to happen.

Instead of running, he grabbed his toolbox, the one that had been decoding the digital locks, and pitched it straight at his now ex partner. The device smashed the gun out of the man's hands just as a shot rang out. The shot caught the smaller man in the foot anyway, and he yelped, hopping backwards as he grabbed at the afflicted appendage and bumped into the display case as he did so. That bump caused the unlocked case to open, the front rising with a whir of mechanics. There was a sudden blaring of sirens.

"Why you," the big man snarled as he grabbed Shinichi by the scruff of the neck and threw him head first into the display. Shinichi's skull cracked against the back wall, and the detective saw stars. The jewels and other things scattered beneath him weren't helping. They were hard, lumpy, and some were sharp and prickly.

"Actually, I gotta thank you, brat," the big man said as he towered over Shinichi and his former partner with the injured foot who was curled up at the foot of the display. "You saved me some trouble. Now the police will believe you killed each other when you startled him in his work, and he tried to fight back."

The big man had retrieved his gun.

Still dazed from the hard crack his head had had against the wall, Shinichi could only watch as the big man raised his weapon.

The shot that rang out wasn't from the big man's gun. Nor did it sound like a regular shot. It was much quieter and came with a hiss like the air was being sliced open.

The shot came from behind him, and the bullet, a metal poker card, sliced across his hand and sent his weapon spinning away. The big man howled in pain as he clutched at his hand and whirled around. Blood seeped from between his fingers.

Shinichi, finally able to move, heaved himself up into a sitting position amidst the mess of the display and saw KID.

The magician was standing at the other end of the hall, card gun raised, and his eyes were blazing a brilliant, fiery orange. And they really were glowing because their eerie light cut right through the shadow beneath his hat and the lens of his own monocle. The air around him seemed to be flexing—distorted as though by a heat haze, and, for an instant, Shinichi could see a shadow around the thief. For just that one fleeting moment, it wasn't Kaito standing there but a shadowy creature with massive wings and talons and eyes that burned.

The big man must have seen the apparition too because he emptied the rest of his bullets at the figure, face pale and sweating. KID dodged every one with ease and stalked closer.

The man dropped his gun and made to flee. Before he could, his body was enveloped by a shroud of what looked almost like fire except that it was too clear—the ghost of flames. The man staggered then fell flat on his face without a sound. Shinichi stared, wide-eyed. What was going on?

The entire hallway seemed to be glowing. The walls wavered, and shadows clambered up the walls and twisted across the floor and ceiling. He might have thought he was dreaming except that his head still hurt where he'd hit it. Everything was just too solid for this to be a dream—everything including the heavy sense of power in the air.

"Wha—what's going on?" the man who had wanted to be famous gasped, voice gone high with fear and confusion.

Shinichi would have liked an answer to that question too.

He could barely make out the figure advancing toward them through the odd haze in the air. For a moment, he wondered if it was really KID or if it was actually someone—something—else. But he knew what he had seen earlier. And the poker card that had disarmed the big man could only have come from KID's card gun.

He could hear shouting. The sound was distant but coming rapidly closer. There was no time to analyze the situation. That would have to wait.

Sliding off the display, Shinichi barely avoided stepping on the man with the injured foot. Keeping one eye trained on the shadow drawing ever closer through the orange haze, he crouched to check the big man's pulse.

"Is he dead?" the man with the injured foot asked in a hushed whisper.

"No." Shinichi released the big man's wrist. "Are you all right?"

The injured man let out a strangled laugh. "Let's see. Someone just tried to kill me, my foot hurts like hell, and I've clearly lost my mind because I swear I see a really creepy ghost thing getting closer by the second." By the end of his statement, the man was starting to sound distinctly hysterical.

The man hadn't even finished talking when the specter before them stretched out a hand, and suddenly the same phantom flames from earlier leapt to life. They surrounded the man with the injured foot, and he screamed, flailing at them.

Shinichi ran forward. Ghost flames streamed past him. The yelling behind him cut off abruptly. The haze thinned, and suddenly he was looking into a pair of bright, orange eyes.

"Who are you?" he asked.

The thing that was and wasn't KID tilted his head to one side in a questioning manner. "Well that's a strange question. Don't tell me you've forgotten me all of a sudden, Tantei-kun. I'm hurt."

Shinichi frowned. He could still hear KID in the way the man spoke, but there was something else there too. The odd, ghostly flames coiled into a spinning ball above the thief's outstretched hand. The detective's bright blue eyes focused on their eerie light. His stomach clenched.

"What is that?" he demanded. "What did you do to those people?"

"Don't worry. It's nothing you need to concern yourself with." The magician flicked his wrist. The flames flowed up his arm and drifted down around him like a cloak then vanished.

"That's not—" Shinichi started to argue, but catching movement out of the corner of his eye and hearing the pounding of feet and shouts, he cut himself off and darted forward, grabbing KID's arm and hurry him down the hall. The thief made no move to dodge or pull away. Fortunately, the elevator was only one hall away.

The ride up in the elevator was silent and stiff. Shinichi still had a hold of Kaito's arm, but it was the detective who felt caught. Because the eyes watching his every move were bright orange and piercing and amused.

Trying not to lose his composure, Shinichi unlocked the room at the end of the hall and ushered KID inside.

"Listen," he began, not at all sure what he wanted to say. "I—"

He never did manage to finish organizing his thoughts because the thief pulled him into a deep, bruising kiss.


	11. Tightrope

The thief's lips crashed down on his, muffling Shinichi's gasp of surprise. His gasp turned into a yelp as Kaito picked him up and crossed the room in a few long strides only to toss Shinichi onto the hotel bed. Shinichi barely had time to get his bearings when the thief was crawling on top of him.

"K—KID, stop!" he gasped, trying and failing to push the magician off of him. It didn't help that half of him didn't really want the magician to stop. The hot mouth latched onto his neck was wreaking havoc on his thought processes, and he found himself arching up against the strong body pressing down on him.

The thought darted across Shinichi's mind that, if the situation was just a little different, he wouldn't be resisting at all. He wanted this—wanted the thief's touch.

But KID wasn't himself right now, and that meant this couldn't be allowed to happen. It wasn't fair to either of them.

Stubbornly ignoring the part of him that just wanted to surrender to the moment, Shinichi searched frantically for a solution. He had no leverage at all in this position, and the softness of the mattress was the opposite of helpful. He twisted under the thief, trying and failing to escape KID's grasp (and he wasn't supposed to be enjoying the feeling of being trapped under the thief because it was only going to distract him from finding a way to put a stop to all this).

"KID," he tried again. He yelped when teeth scraped across his collarbone. "Kaito!"

The thief froze. Shinichi felt his heart leap. He stilled.

"Kaito?" he asked, voice softer now.

He wasn't prepared for the speed with which the thief disappeared. Confused, Shinichi levered himself into a sitting position and looked around. He found the thief standing on the other side of the room. He noted with relief that the thief's eyes had returned to normal. KID's expression—or rather lack thereof, however, put him on edge again.

"Kaito?"

"I'm sorry," the thief said abruptly, bowing his head. "I didn't…I shouldn't have… I'm sorry."

"No! No, it's okay," Shinichi said hastily. "Really," he added when the thief gave him a disbelieving look. Blushing, he looked down, only now noticing that his clothes were a mess. His shirt had been unbuttoned (when, he had no idea) and was now hanging from his shoulders. The realization only made him redder. But he had to say something. He couldn't let things be. At the same time, what was he supposed to say? Now was probably a bad time to start asking questions about what had happened back in that hallway. He could sense that KID was upset with himself even if the thief's expression wasn't showing it. Shinichi couldn't let him leave thinking that the detective was upset with him.

Shinichi groaned inwardly. Relationships had never been his forte. He always felt awkward talking about his own feelings.

"I'll go get us something to drink." The thief turned.

"Wait!" Shinichi blurted. He scrambled off the bed as the thief paused in mid step. Giving up on hiding his blush, he hurried across the room and wrapped his arms around the thief. He felt KID stiffen in surprise, but he couldn't see the thief's expression because he had his face buried against the thief's shoulder.

"I love you."

Kaito blinked down at the top of the detective's head. The words had been muffled, but he knew he'd heard them. Warmth washed through him, and he brought his arms up slowly to return the detective's embrace. Shinichi wasn't mad or disgusted at him for his loss of control. The relief that that knowledge brought with it was sweeter than the best chocolate.

But now that his emotions weren't as in turmoil as they had been a moment ago, he had to wonder when they had gotten back to Shinichi's room. Hadn't he been in the middle of his heist just a moment ago? He'd just successfully ditched the police and decided to go check on Shinichi because he'd seen the detective leave the room before his show had ended—which, by the by, had been most rude. But…what had happened after that? Clearly he'd found Shinichi, but how had they ended up here in the middle of—he cut that thought off because A, it made him feel guilty, and B, it caused certain…problems downstairs.

Wait a moment. Shinichi had called him by his real name.

Shocked, he placed his hands on Shinichi's shoulders and held him out at arm's length. Blue eyes blinked at him in confusion.

"You called me Kaito," he said.

The detective blinked again before understanding dawned. An embarrassed look crossed Shinichi's face as he raised a hand to scratch at his cheek. "Um, well…"

"When did you find out?"

"I…sort of ran into a friend of yours at school. Nakamori Aoko. She thought I was you. When we sorted out the misunderstanding, she showed me your picture and told me about you. I wasn't a hundred percent sure until just now, but it made sense…"

Kaito blinked then burst out laughing.

Half an hour later, the two young men sat side by side on the suite's plush couch, each with a cup of hot chocolate in hand. Kaito had recounted everything he could remember, and Shinichi had just finished describing the events that had gone missing from the thief's memory. There was a long silence as Kaito digested the news.

Finally, with a slow deliberateness that made his words all the more foreboding, he said, "I can remember their faces."

Shinichi turned to stare at him. "What?"

"The thieves you just mentioned. As you talked about it, I could picture them. The one that tried to kill you was a giant of a guy with a hat. The other guy was skinny and had bleached hair."

Shinichi drew in a sharp breath. "So you remember what happened now?"

"Not exactly." Frustrated, Kaito ran a hand through his already wild hair. Shinichi couldn't help but stare a moment, thinking how surreal it felt to be sitting here with Kaito as, well, Kaito. The magician had dispensed with both his Kaitou KID ensemble and his Koji disguise after returning from fetching the hot chocolate. After all, he'd said, Shinichi already knew who he was, so there was no point to keeping up the disguises. "It's more like…when you remember bits and pieces from a dream."

"Do you remember anything about the fire?"

"You mean the ones you said didn't burn but seemed to create a heat haze anyway?"

"Yes."

Kaito narrowed his eyes, thinking hard. "I can picture what they look like," he said finally. "And I know they weren't flames."

"So…any idea what they were?"

"I wish I could tell you," the thief replied honestly then sighed. "Damn it, this is definitely crossing into Koizumi's territory."

Shinichi blinked. "Who?"

"Koizumi Akako. She's a witch I know."

"…I'm sorry, I'm not sure I heard you right. Did you just say she's a witch?"

Kaito flashed him a crooked smile, clearly amused despite the severity of the situation. "Yep. With potions and magic spells and all that."

"You can't be serious…"

"Trust me. I didn't believe it at first either. But I've seen more proof than I ever wanted to. She's the real deal."

Shinichi still looked dubious. Magic spells and potions? Really? He had run into any number of cases where murderers tried to foist their crimes off onto supernatural beings and whatnot, but he had never run across a case where that supernatural entity or phenomenon was real. In fact, KID himself was a prime example of this. Many of the thief's tricks and stunts ranged from superhuman to simply impossible until you figured out the truth behind the illusion.

On the other hand, that meant the magician should know better than anyone else that most such 'magic' was merely deception. And in that case, wouldn't Kaito be better at recognizing the real thing if it ever did show up?

And that apparition he'd seen back in that hallway—the way the air had gone heavy with power. That had been no illusion. He didn't know if he was ready to call it magic. Although he suspected that someone who had spent a few years as someone ten years younger than he really was didn't have any room to be skeptical.

"Yoo hoo~, anyone home?" A hand waved in front of his face.

Shinichi jerked back in shock, dropping his cup. The waving hand darted down and caught the cup before it could hit the ground.

"Close one there," the owner of said hand said far too cheerfully. He set his own empty cup and Shinichi's nearly empty one down on the table by the couch. "Seriously, you were a million miles away. I don't appreciate being ignored, Tantei-kun."

"I was just thinking," Shinichi grumbled. "This…girl you mentioned." He couldn't bring himself to call her a witch. "Do you think she could help?"

Kaito grimaced. "Probably. Though whether she'd be willing is an entirely different issue. And even if she was willing, I'm not sure getting her help would be a good idea."

"You didn't offend her somehow, did you?"

The magician snorted. "Yeah. Because I didn't fall madly in love with her."

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "Is that all?"

"Oi, I'm serious. She was like the queen bee at my school back in our high school days. Since everyone—well, the guys anyway—worshipped the ground she walked on, she took it way too personally when I didn't. She even tried to kill me, though fortunately she got over that. Now she just tries to slip me love potions when I'm not looking."

"…" Shinichi really didn't know what he was supposed to say to that. "So you're still in contact with her then…"

"Er, well." Kaito coughed lightly. "She likes to appear without warning and spout cryptic prophecies and warnings at me. Aoko tried to force feed me salmon last time she thought I was rude to Koizumi, so now I have to have lunch with her sometimes. It's not like a date or anything," he added hastily when Shinichi just continued to stare at him.

"That wasn't what I was thinking about," the detective replied with perfect honesty. "I was just thinking that you seem to be on pretty good terms with her, so maybe you should ask her if she has any suggestions for your problem."

"…Good terms? Did you miss the bit where I mentioned that she tried to kill me?"

"You also said you two moved past that."

"Well, yeah, but she's still really creepy."

"Still, it doesn't hurt to ask, right?"

"Says you. What if she wants my soul or something?"

"Then say no, and we'll look for answers somewhere else. But if you want to solve a mystery, you have to follow potential leads. Ignoring a lead just because you don't like someone won't help."

Kaito remained silent for a long moment before he let out an exaggerated sigh. "Okay, fine. You might have a point. But if I have to talk to her, you're coming with me. Then you'll see what I mean, and I can say I told you so."

Shinichi blinked. "…Okay? I don't mind. But won't it be a problem if one of your friends finds out we know each other?"

"It's Koizumi. I'll bet she already knows."

Well, Shinichi reflected, the thief certainly had a lot of faith in this Koizumi's powers. That was good right? Why was he starting to get nervous now? Just because the girl freaked out even the crazy, ever unflappable magician thief didn't mean she was…that…scary…

Okay. Now he was worried.

A finger flicked the tip of his nose. Shinichi jumped, going cross-eyed. Laughter filled the air. Scowling, the detective rounded on the chortling thief.

"Do you have to keep doing that?"

"I wouldn't have to if you didn't keep ignoring me," the thief retorted, smirking. "Like I said, I don't like being ignored."

"That doesn't give you the right to scare people," Shinichi huffed.

"Aww, poor Shin-chan." Leaning in quickly, the magician planted a quick kiss on Shinichi's cheek then pulled the television remote out of thin air with a flourish. "That's enough gloom for one night. Actually, that was way more gloom than anyone should have on Christmas Eve. I say we forget about it at least until the day after next. Agreed?"

Shinichi nodded slowly, though he made a mental note to check in with the police on the fates of the two failed robbers.

They spent the next hour and a half watching a romantic comedy that, while not the most riveting movie in the world, was sufficiently funny and pleasantly relaxing after the stressful evening they'd had. At some point, they migrated from the couch to the foot of the bed because the view of the television screen was better from there.

"I…wouldn't have minded if it was you."

Kaito glanced sideways at Shinichi. The detective had his gaze fixed straight ahead, and he was blushing furiously. The main actors in the movie were on the screen, kissing under the mistletoe as the credits began to roll, but Shinichi's gaze wasn't focused so much on the screen as some point in the far distance that only he could see. Considering his words, however, it didn't take Kaito long to put two and two together and figure out what he was talking about.

"I mean, if it's you," Shinichi continued, tone growing even quieter. "But only if it's you. So don't…go disappearing on me."

Indigo eyes softened. Kaito found himself at a loss for words for one of the very few times in his life. Then again, he'd always been a man of action. So he turned and pulled the detective onto his lap. Shinichi let out a startled squeak that made the thief grin as he tightened his hold on his blue-eyed angel.

"I promise," he said fiercely, tone serious despite the grin on his face. "No matter what happens, I'll never leave you."

Neither of them was sure who moved first. It was simply that one moment, they were looking into each other's eyes, searching for the answers to questions they couldn't quite name, then the next their lips had touched, and the kiss was slow and sweet.

It was nothing like the kiss from before, Shinichi thought. That kiss had been harsh and demanding. Raw. The sudden, overwhelming intensity of it had been downright frightening even as it had made his toes curl for more.

That kiss had burned. This one made him feel like his very thoughts were melting. It was a good thing they were sitting down because he was pretty sure that if he'd been standing, his knees would have given out on him.

Despite their differences, both kisses made him tremble as his heart beat faster and heat spread like molten honey through his body. He realized then that, despite all the problems he knew still lay ahead of them, there really was nowhere else he would rather be than here in the arms of the thief he had come to love.

This time, when Kaito pushed him down onto the bed, Shinichi only wrapped his arms around the magician's neck, pulling Kaito down for another kiss. The thief was more than happy to oblige.


	12. The Dragon's Will

It was the creepiest house that Shinichi had ever seen. It wasn't really about the appearance though. He had seen plenty of creepy, haunted house type houses over the course of his life. But somehow this house trumped them all. It was the atmosphere.

This house didn't just look creepy. It oozed creepy like it was a part of its very nature woven into the fabric of existence around this house.

"So…you're sure this is where she lives?" Shinichi asked a little hesitantly.

Kaito grimaced. "Yes, I'm sure. Trust me. You never forget this place once you've been here."

Shinichi could believe it. Too well. "So…do we knock?"

"Don't bother. I bet she'll be out in a moment in all her creepy glory. Just…try not to make her angry."

The fact that the Kaitou KID himself was showing such unease at the prospect of seeing this woman was making Shinichi feel like maybe he shouldn't have suggested coming, but it was too late to turn back now.

True to Kaito's prediction, the creepy mansion's front door creaked open and out stepped a slender young woman with dark red hair and ruby red eyes. Her clothes fit right in with the haunted house feel of her home. It should have looked ridiculous—like she was wearing an out of season Halloween costume, but it was impossible to find this woman funny. She was too elegant. And too…well, let's just say Shinichi could understand perfectly now why Kaito was so freaked out by her. There was just something about her that screamed danger.

"Good morning," the redhead said, giving Kaito a seductive smile. "I was wondering how long it would take you to come see me."

"I suppose you already know everything," Kaito said a touch sarcastically.

"I certainly know more than you do," the girl replied, amusement gleaming in ruby eyes. She flipped her long, crimson hair over her shoulder as she turned back towards the house. "Do come inside."

The inside of the mansion was every bit as sinister as its outside had suggested. Shinichi wouldn't have been at all surprised to see bats hanging from the ceilings. There weren't any bats, but there was a lot of gothic furniture and even a couple lit braziers in the sitting room where they ended up. A rather decrepit looking old man appeared the moment they were all seated to serve them tea. The man had appeared so suddenly and quietly that Shinichi almost jumped at the sight of him. But then the man had bowed and vanished as mysteriously as he had appeared.

Akako picked up her cup and took a delicate sip. Neither Kaito nor Shinichi touched their cups.

The redhead's cup touched down on her saucer with a soft clink. "So," she began, gaze never once leaving Kaito's face. "You came to me for information."

"About the jewel called the Dragon's Heart and the sleeping sickness going around," Kaito confirmed. "Can you help us?"

"Of course," the girl replied. "For a price."

"Naturally," the magician muttered under his breath before raising his voice. "What do you want?"

"A kiss."

"No."

The girl only shrugged, unsurprised. "In that case, you can treat me to dinner."

"I'm not going on a date with you."

The redhead pouted. "You mean you won't even buy a lady dinner to show your gratitude? How rude."

Kaito hesitated a moment then sighed. "Fine, I'll buy you dinner."

The reluctance in the magician's voice didn't seem to bother the witch at all. She only smiled. "All right then. Now give me your hand."

Kaito blinked. "Why?"

"Just show me your hand," the girl repeated, holding her own out imperiously.

"What, are you palm reading now?" Kaito asked, but he did as she asked and held out his right hand. The moment Akako's hand touched his, a red glow surrounded his hand. Both Kaito and Shinichi tensed. Before either of them could say anything, however, the light had coalesced into a transparent replica of the very jewel that had started all this.

Shinichi drew in a sharp breath. Kaito just stared. He could see the jewel clearly, but it had no weight. An illusion then, but for what purpose?

Akako alone was unsurprised by the ghostly jewel's appearance. She simply studied it for a long moment before waving a hand over it. The red light and the jewel disappeared.

"You may put down your hand now."

Kaito drew his hand back, examining it before he put it down. "So? Are you going to explain?"

"It is quite simple, really," Akako replied, picking up her teacup once again. "You have inherited the dragon's will."

"What does that mean?" asked Shinichi.

"Tell me, what do you know about the jewel you took?" Akako asked, still looking at Kaito like it was the magician who had asked.

Kaito quickly recounted the story he had told Shinichi at the Halloween heist.

Akako nodded when he was done. "I conducted a little research myself when I sensed the disturbance over Halloween. The jewel you refer to as the Dragon's Heart is, in fact, the physical manifestation of a fragment of a dragon's soul. One of the last dragons, in fact. One who chose to remain in this world even after humans appeared and its brethren departed for other, more hospitable worlds. It stayed because it loved this world, and, at first, it thought it could live alongside humans. But, as you have already heard, things did not go well. It was slain. But a dragon's soul is powerful. Simply dying cannot stop it. So he left a piece of his soul behind, filled with all his hatred and regrets, his loves and his despair for this world that used to be his. It is his will. The will to reclaim what was taken from him and to take his revenge upon the humans who, in their arrogance, sought to claim that which they had no right to take."

"So are you saying I'm possessed?" Kaito asked.

"No, and yes."

He suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. "I didn't realize that was an ambiguous question."

"You speak of the possession of spirits. Which is understandable. Media and entertainment these days does enjoy exploiting such concepts. But there is no other soul here. What you have here is a case of a transfer of wills."

"Which means?"

The witch's smile fell from her face so abruptly that it made both Kaito and Shinichi stiffen with a sense of dread. Neither dared interrupt her, waiting in breathless silence as she chose her words.

"It means that you are no longer simply yourself," she said finally. "As I said, you have inherited the dragon's will—its desires and its hatred. Slowly, they will become more and more a part of you until they are your own. I suppose you can consider yourself its offspring."

"What, so I've been adopted?"

"You could call it that. Though reborn may be a better word. By inheriting the dragon's will, you now have a piece of its soul, and, by default, its power. As you assimilate it, you too are changing. You are no longer entirely human."

Kaito looked dubious. "Let's say I believe all that. It doesn't explain the sleeping sickness incidents. Or are you saying that's something else?"

"Come now, you know better than that." Akako set down her empty cup. Her butler immediately materialized from the shadows to fill it for her again before vanishing just as silently as he'd appeared. "It is difficult to put this into mundane terms, but, for lack of a more accurate way to describe the situation, you can consider the part of you that has already merged with the dragon's legacy to be another entity for now, one seeking to become what it should be, according to the will of its progenitor. And for that, it seeks three things. It needs a body—a host, if you will. One with a compatible soul. That's you." She nodded towards Kaito. "It also needs life energy. A dragon's soul and magical powers are immense. It needs that energy to speed up the development of those powers and complete the transformation of the soul. That energy, it is collecting from the humans it attacks. It is actually somewhat surprising that none of its victims have died. It could have drained them dry if it had chosen to."

"Well, if it just wants to regain its strength, maybe it doesn't actually want to hurt anyone," Shinichi suggested. "It doesn't have to kill to get what it wants."

Akako looked amused. "Naïve child. Do you think such a mighty creature would care for the lives of a few humans? Even if the soul it was born from did care once, don't forget that it was humans who slew it in the name of their own greed. No, it has no reason to care for humans and every reason to despise them. It is more likely that it does not wish to attract more attention than is necessary while it is still weak. If it were to kill, people would become much more wary and hunt it down with a great deal more vigor."

"So you're saying it might change its mind about killing when it gets stronger," Kaito said quietly, indigo eyes dark.

Akako regarded him thoughtfully. "Perhaps. Although I suppose there is another possibility."

"And that is?"

"Well, its will is merging with your soul. If your will is stronger, it is slightly possible that you could subdue its wrathful nature."

"So maybe it hasn't been killing because Kaito doesn't want to kill?" Shinichi asked.

"If you wish to be optimistic then that may be a possibility. In any case, that is probably your only hope if you wish to retain your current identity."

"How?"

"There will come times when its will will surface more strongly. Most likely, in response to situations that stimulate the hatred and rage left over by the dragon which it has now passed on to you. Those are the moments where you must test your will against that of your curse. Each time you give in to this other side of you, it will get stronger. However, if your will is stronger then you can retain identity."

"But that means this is just going to go on forever."

"In a word, yes. Although, once it has reached full strength, I suspect things will come to a head. Win that battle and any subsequent contest should be much easier."

Kaito hesitated then coughed lightly. "I…don't suppose you could remove this curse or whatever?"

"I am afraid not," the redhead said, and it seemed to him that she sounded honestly regretful. "You will never be rid of this other side of you. We have been referring to it as another entity, but that was for convenience. It is in reality just another side of your soul. The one that has accepted the dragon's legacy."

"I see." He supposed that would have been too much to hope for. "You said it wanted three things. But you've only talked about two. What's the third."

Ruby eyes turned to look pointedly at Shinichi.

Kaito tensed.

The witch laughed suddenly, making both boys stare at her in bewilderment. "Don't worry, it doesn't want to hurt your little sparrow."

"Then what?" Kaito demanded. He was beginning to lose his patience with the redhead's cryptic answers.

She smirked at them both. "Can't you guess? All living creatures yearn for companionship."

Kaito's face went blank. Shinichi looked confused for a moment before his face turned abruptly red. "O—oh."

"Yes. Oh."

"B…but why me?" He cast a sideways look at Kaito out of the corner of his eye, suddenly feeling a little worried. It wasn't that he thought the magician's feelings weren't genuine. But if they were being influenced… His heart clenched at the thought. He suddenly felt rather cold.

Akako only shrugged. "Like I said, this so called curse is not a possession. It is a metamorphosis. As Kuroba had feelings for you," she pronounced the words with a certain level of disdain, "this other him does as well."

The magician and the detective left the witch's house in a pensive silence. In some ways, they were relieved because they had finally gotten some answers, but in other ways they were even more at a loss than they had been before. Neither of them was sure what they should do next.


	13. Anticipation

Sighing, Kaito leaned back against the wall of the dove aerie, arms folded across his chest, gaze fixed on the doves, who were all happily pecking away at their breakfasts. Normally, he found caring for his birds to be a relaxing way to take his mind off things, but today it wasn't working.

He felt like there was an anvil hanging over his head. Koizumi had said that there would be some kind of…of final confrontation, he supposed was the best way to put it, but she hadn't been able to tell them what exactly that would be or when it would happen. All she had said was that it would be soon, which wasn't exactly comforting.

Was he really supposed to just go about his business and wait for the proverbial bomb to explode?

He snorted. That was totally not his style.

He was the Kaitou KID. He didn't sit around hoping that things worked out. He was a man of action! Always had been, always would be. And that meant making plans and backup plans.

Planning, however, required information.

His thoughts drifted back to that Christmas night. The incident after that heist was his clearest memory of one of those odd moments where he had been both himself and this other self that was slowly creeping into his psyche. Looking at it, he knew that the trigger had been anger and fear—fear for Shinichi's safety and anger at the people trying to hurt his detective.

He had never had much tolerance for bullies of any kind and he had even less patience for killers. He had lost one person he loved to such scum. He wasn't going to lose another. Not ever.

Outside of such situations, however, he'd always considered himself to be quite a laid back sort. He didn't get angry often because, well, what was the point? Anger bred only more anger, not to mention it clouded the mind and led to bad decisions. In the long run, it just wasn't worth the effort.

Lately though, he'd noticed that his own mood was becoming more volatile. That had to be connected.

Indigo eyes drifted from the burbling doves to the window and the blue, blue sky beyond.

Blue like Shinichi's eyes. The corner of Kaito's mouth quirked up as a feeling of warmth swelled in his chest. It was heartening to know that he had the detective's support no matter what came of this. At the same time, Shinichi's presence gave him another reason to win this battle.

A somewhat goofy grin crept its way onto Kaito's face.

That night might have had a rough start, but it had certainly unfolded beautifully. Not only had Shinichi not been mad at him or put off by his recent behavior, he had told Kaito that he loved him.

That alone had made all the turmoil of this debacle worthwhile.

The kisses and subsequent activities had just been the icing on the cake. The very delectable icing on the already splendid cake.

And once again Kaito found his thoughts derailing. Though he would admit that he may have had plans of a risqué nature for the after-heist party with Shinichi, he had been fully prepared to ditch all of that when he'd had his little moment of insanity (of the not so harmless variety). The last thing he wanted to do was to force Shinichi into anything he wasn't ready for. But it had turned out that Shinichi was more ready than he'd thought.

Kaito remembered all too well the way Shinichi had looked spread out on the hotel bed beneath him, bare and trembling with need. He could still feel Shinichi's blunt fingernails scraping down his back as the detective's lithe body writhed under him, legs wrapped around Kaito's waist like his life depended on it—could hear the way Shinichi cried out his name, his real name, in breathless pleasure.

Kaito gave himself a shake, becoming abruptly and painfully aware that his pants had become extremely uncomfortable.

He tried thinking about something else for a moment, but he knew a lost cause when he saw (felt?) one. Seeing as his doves really didn't need his supervision to finish their meal, he made a beeline for the shower where he could finish getting ready for the day. And if he allowed himself some time to indulge in a little fantasy of pinning Shinichi to his shower wall, well, he was still on vacation and didn't strictly have to be anywhere just yet.

His plans for the day involved mostly the refining of a few new magic trick ideas and the planning of his next heist. He already had a target in mind, and he was thinking of taking a casual stroll over to the museum in question for a look see before heading over to the university's new year's party. He had been asked to give a short magic show as part of the night's entertainment. Never one to pass up an opportunity to show off—er, perform, he had agreed. He had pretty much everything prepared, but he wanted to double check everything before the party. Since he would be kicking things off, there would be plenty of time for food and mingling afterward.

Aoko had said that she wanted to introduce him to some people.

A small smirk made its way onto Kaito's face. He had a feeling he knew who she was talking about.

Shinichi had told him that he'd be at the party too. For his part, he was simply being dragged there by Ran and Sonoko, as per usual.

Well, they might as well enjoy themselves while they had the chance.

Once he'd finished taking care of his birds and his own morning ablutions, Kaito made his way downstairs to the kitchen in search of breakfast. His mother had left early for a reunion with some of her old friends. She had asked him repeatedly if he wanted to accompany her, but he had declined with the excuse that he had his own New Year's party to go to. He felt a little bad about it because he could tell that she had wanted him to go with her. They hadn't been spending much time together as a family as of late. But he simply had too much on his mind, and he knew that she would see that if he spent too much time with her. She'd always been able to read him like a book if given the opportunity. He supposed it was a mother thing.

Well, he would make it up to her later when all of this was over. He could introduce her to Shinichi. He had the feeling she would enjoy that.

With his mother gone, however, he had to cook for himself—or rather, in most cases, swing over to Aoko's for a bite to eat. But he had caught a glimpse of Hakuba entering the Nakamori house earlier that morning when he'd gone to pick up his morning newspaper. And if the blond was over there having breakfast then Kaito would much prefer to deal with whatever he could scrape together himself.

Food tasted better in good company. But that worked both ways.

He should have invited Shinichi over. They were still on holiday after all. But he supposed that would have been inviting trouble too with Aoko and Hakuba just next door. Better wait until the introductions were made at the party, as Kaito was almost positive they would be.

Opening the cupboards and refrigerator, Kaito surveyed his options. Eventually, he picked up two eggs, two slices of bread, and some butter.

He'd seen his mother make scrambled egg sandwiches before, and it hadn't looked too hard. She had let him try it once, and he would have gotten it done perfectly that time if he hadn't gotten impatient and turned the heat up too high and…uh, well, let's forget about that escapade and the poor pan that would never be the same again. But he was pretty sure he knew what not to do this time.

There was something almost magical about the way the liquid eggs fluffed up and broke apart as it was stirred. The heat from the stove wafted up in tangible waves. It didn't smell as good as when his mother was cooking it though. He supposed that meant he'd forgotten an ingredient or something, but it was a bit late now to be wondering what was missing. It would just have to do.

He popped two slices of toast into the toaster. Leaning against the counter, he drummed his fingers, eyes wandering idly around the kitchen as he waited. His thoughts wandered to his plans for the show that evening. He had had everything worked out, but now that he knew Shinichi would be in the audience, he found himself wanting to make it more elaborate. There wasn't much time though. Well, he could at least expand on the finale. He'd orchestrated a small, indoors (emulated) fireworks show because it was New Year's and what was New Year's without fireworks. But now that he knew Shinichi was here, he wanted to make the show ten times more spectacular. No, he wasn't going to settle for anything less than a full blown fireworks parade!

And he knew he could do it too. It was just the small problem of safety measures. After all, fireworks were not meant for the indoors. He had toyed around with methods to simulate the visual effect of fireworks without the real things, but they still required a little bit of real fire. So how to keep that under control if he upped the scale…

The toast popped up and he turned, raising a hand to pluck one slice from the toaster. He froze.

There were flickers of flame dancing about his hand. He touched the toast, and the crust became just that bit more black and crispy. Turning away again, Kaito held up both his hands.

Fire danced around both his hands. But they weren't hot. It didn't burn. Instead, it felt like he was holding feathery warmth whirling about in a soft wind.

This was real fire, he knew. They were his.

Experimentally, he held up a finger. A tongue of red flame twined up his finger to dance at the tip like a candle flame. Then, at his thought, it turned blue then white then yellow then orange.

A slow grin spread across the phantom thief's face.

His fireworks show was just about to become the most exciting fireworks show anyone at the college New Year's party would ever have seen and ever would see again, indoors or not.

-0-

"That was incredible!" Sonoko gushed, face aglow with genuine wonder.

It was that honest amazement and not her words that made Kaito grin. "Thank you."

"Especially those fireworks," Ran agreed, just as excited as her petit friend. "How did you manage to do that?"

Kaito laughed. "It's magic, of course."

Aoko let out a loud snort, though he could tell that even she was impressed. "I was afraid for a moment there that you'd burn this whole place down around our ears."

The magician rolled his eyes. "Gee, so glad to know you have such faith in me."

Aoko only shrugged. "There's a reason children are taught not to play with fire. It's not really something people can control."

"Then clearly you do not know just how awesome I am. What a shame. I mean, we grew up together. You should know by now that there is nothing in the world that I can't do."

"Except being humble," Hakuba grunted from where he was standing on Aoko's other side with a cup of tea. Everyone ignored him.

Ran was excited to meet this strange but brilliant magician who looked like her best friend's crazy cousin—or should that be evil twin? In any case, she had a lot of questions, and she could tell that Sonoko did too. Yet though Kaito answered them all with a smile and a joke or three, she couldn't help but notice that he appeared distracted.

"So Ran-san," he said finally, turning to her. "Where's that detective friend of yours? Did he leave already? I kinda wanted to know what he thought about my show."

"He went out onto the balcony," Ran replied. "I'm afraid he's a bit…cynical about magic. So I wouldn't take anything he says too seriously."

"Now I have to hear it," Kaito laughed. "I threw together that entire last part to see if I could surprise the great Detective of the East. It'd be pretty pointless if he doesn't at least tell me what he thought."

That said, he made his way out onto the balcony, leaving Ran to hope that her friend kept his tongue in check and wasn't too mean to the cheerful, friendly magician.

Outside, the night air was cool if not exactly clear. There were still cars rumbling by below, and they couldn't see much of the stars with the city lights all around them. Still, at least it was quieter than it had been inside. Almost everyone had gone into the main ballroom for more dancing and food.

Shinichi alone stood by the railing, cup of warm coffee in hand, gazing out at something only he could see.

Lost in his thoughts, he almost jumped when strong arms slid around his waist and pulled him back against a familiar chest. He relaxed a little now that he recognized who it was.

"Hey," he said softly, still looking up at the night sky.

"Hey," Kaito said back, brushing a chaste kiss across Shinichi's cheek before leaning down to trail kisses down his neck. "Did you watch the show?"

"Of course I did," Shinichi replied, chuckling. "It was incredible, as always. You really outdid yourself."

He could feel the thief's smirk against the sensitive skin of his neck. "I thought so too."

"I'm still not sure how you did those flames."

"Well~, I may have cheated a little."

"Hmm? How so?" He closed his eyes, letting his head loll back against Kaito's shoulder. He could feel Kaito's smirk against his neck. He shivered.

"Like this." Kaito unwound one arm from around his detective's waist and held it up so that Shinichi could see the three balls of fire that suddenly sprang to life above his fingertips.

Shinichi started. "How did you do that?"

"Magic."

"A new trick?"

"No. This time, it's real." When Shinichi didn't immediately respond, Kaito explained what had happened that morning in the kitchen. AS he did so, he flicked his wrist, demonstrating how he could pull flames right out of the air, shape them, change their colors, then send them back into oblivion.

"Cool, right?" he asked when he was done. Letting his arm fall back to rest comfortably around the smaller boy's waist, he turned to burry his nose in Shinichi's hair.

"Is that all?" Shinichi asked, voice a little unsteady.

Confused, Kaito blinked. "All what?"

"I just…doesn't it bother you?"

"Why should it? It's pretty cool if you ask me. Think of all the fun I can have!"

"But this means you're changing."

Kaito froze. Did it? Probably. Now that he thought about it, he should really have been surprised by the development of these new powers, sudden as they'd come. But all he had felt about it was a certain sense of rightness. He'd been pleased and not the least bit confused as to why these powers were rightfully his. They just were.

"I guess you're right," he murmured finally, warm breath ghosting past Shinichi's ear.

They stood there for a long moment, the mood from the party suddenly dimmed by the new realization. It was Shinichi who finally broke it—surprising even himself.

"It's New Year's Eve," he said, tilting his head to the side so he could look up at the magician hugging him from behind. "We shouldn't begin the year on a sour note. Let's forget about the curse for now and just have fun."

Kaito blinked again then chuckled. "Well, if even a workaholic like yourself is saying we should have fun then clearly we must."

Shinichi rolled his eyes, but he was smiling. "So what would you like to do then? Have you eaten yet? We could go get something to eat."

Kaito's smile turned into a smirk. "Nah. I'd rather begin the new year making love to you." His smirk grew at the way Shinichi's face instantly turned red.

"D—don't say things like that," the detective spluttered. "It's weird."

"But it's true~."

"That doesn't make it less weird," Shinichi grumbled. "Anyway, the others will notice if we disappear."

"Ah, so you like my idea."

"What? No! I didn't mean—argh, just…whatever. Anyway, you should eat something. You're always telling me not to skip meals. Don't be a hypocrite."

"Actually, I ate before my show. I knew I'd be swamped with adoring fans afterward, so I planned ahead."

"…"

Kaito laughed. "Come on. The staff were kind enough to give me a suite so I could prepare my props and things in peace. I know you don't really want to go back into the crowds. And if we head up separately, I doubt our friends would make a connection. You just go back and say your goodbyes and head up first. I'll go grace my fans with my presence for another fifteen minutes or so then bring us up some refreshments. How about it?"

Shinichi hesitated. He would be lying if he said the suggestion wasn't appealing.

"The suite's got a Jacuzzi~."

Shinichi surrendered. He would probably end up going with Kaito sooner or later anyway, he reasoned. Besides, it was New Year's Eve. Everyone else was enjoying themselves. Why shouldn't he?

"Um, so…what room was it?" he asked, cursing the blush he could feel returning.

"It's on the keycard," Kaito murmured into his ear as he slipped the plastic card into Shinichi's back pocket. The detective let out a squeak when the magician's hand gave his bottom a playful squeeze. He didn't have time to say anything however as Kaito spun him around and kissed him full on the lips before stepping back.

"I'll see you soon then." With that, Kaito ducked back into the ballroom, leaving a red-faced Shinichi on the balcony.


	14. Portents

The city beyond the hotel window glittered as though it were filled with stars. Above that shining expanse, fireworks exploded in expanding rings and cascades of color, the deafening bangs of their eruptions considerably muted by both the distance and the walls of the hotel. He couldn't see the real stars with all those manmade lights both above and below, and Shinichi lamented that loss.

He heard the door open and close, and he saw Kaito's reflection in the glass. The magician set a tray bearing two tall glasses and a handful of small plates bearing tiny sandwiches and cakes on the suite's large, mahogany table. Then he padded up behind Shinichi and slid his arms around the detective's waist, pulling him back flush against Kaito's strong chest.

Shinichi relaxed into the embrace, letting his eyes flutter shut and just relishing in the feeling of safety and warmth that he couldn't help but feel when he was with Kaito. Part of him wished they could just stay here like this forever.

"Are you hungry?" Kaito asked, nibbling lightly on Shinichi's ear. "I highly recommend the those little mango cake tart things. They're rather good."

"Maybe later," Shinichi replied without opening his eyes as he turned around to slip his arms around Kaito and tuck his head under the magician's chin. He let out a happy sigh as he snuggled closer to the magician's warmth. He was simply too content where he was right now to want to move.

He felt more than heard Kaito's quiet chuckle. One of his arms remained wrapped protectively around Shinichi while his other hand began to rub slow circles on Shinichi's lower back.

They stayed like that for a long moment, just enjoying the fact that they were together. Gradually though, Kaito's hands migrated from Shinichi's back and waist down to his hips, fingertips teasing under the hem of Shinichi's shirt to trace the warm skin beneath. Shinichi looked up then, and Kaito took the opportunity to claim his lips in a slow, deep kiss.

Shinichi melted into the kiss.

He made no objections when Kaito abruptly scooped him up into a bridal carry. He only wrapped his arms around Kaito's neck and let his head rest against the magician's shoulder. Kaito carried him into the suite's large bedroom and laid him down on the king-sized bed before crawling on top of him, skilled hands already busy stripping Shinichi bare.

A hot mouth descended hungrily over Shinichi's own as those same hands proceeded to roam every inch of his body before finding that secret place inside him that made his spine arch and cries of pleasure tear themselves from his lips. And all Shinichi could think about (all he really wanted to think about) as he wrapped his legs around his thief to pull him closer—deeper—was Kaito.

-0-

Two figures lay entwined in a mess of soft sheets. The room was quiet. Only the sound of soft, even breathing could be heard. On the nightstand stood a pair of empty drinking glasses and a neat stack of empty plates.

A pair of indigo eyes snapped open. In the darkness of the room, they almost seemed to glow, and if anyone had been there and looked more closely into those eyes, they might have seen a spark of orange like reflections of a nonexistent fire.

For a long moment, Kaito lay perfectly still, listening to Shinichi's quiet breaths and wondering what had woken him. Sensing, seeing, and hearing nothing out of the ordinary, he let his gaze settle on his detective's peacefully sleeping face. Shinichi was half curled up on his side facing Kaito with one hand tucked under the pillow. Warmth swelled in his chest at the sight. Gently, he ran a hand through that silky soft, black hair then traced his fingertips down his side before letting his hand come to a rest lightly cupping the detective's hip. He smiled when Shinichi unconsciously shifted closer to him, mumbling something incoherent in his sleep. His detective really was adorable, and the fact that he was the one who got to see Shinichi like this was a pleasure on in itself.

His gaze traced the beautiful lines of Shinichi's face before trailing down the pale curve of his neck. There, he lingered on the rather prominent mark he'd left right on the juncture between Shinichi's neck and shoulder. He felt a surge of satisfaction seeing that mark—his mark—on Shinichi's skin. It was only one of many he'd left on his detective's body.

Mine.

The thought was a low, dark purr in the back of his mind that sent a thrill through his very being.

Careful not to wake his love, he gathered Shinichi to his chest and tucked the detective's head under his chin. Then he closed his eyes and allowed himself to drift back to sleep feeling oddly like he had reached some kind of agreement, though with whom and what about, he couldn't say.

-0-

With the holidays over, classes resumed. Life settled back into normalcy almost shockingly quickly, though no one was really surprised. It was the way of the holidays to blow in with all their sparkling lights then leave again with promises of future years. They were a highlight only because they came and went.

In any case, though life had returned to normal, some things had not because normal now meant that Kaito, Aoko, and Hakuba often spent their lunch hours or days off with one Kudo Shinichi and his friends Mouri Ran, Suzuki Sonoko, and the surprising Suzuhara Luke. Now that they had all been introduced and hit it off, if not well then not poorly, they had started to gravitate towards each other even when they returned to the university campus.

That being said, Suzuhara was a medical student, so he didn't share many if any classes with any of them and typically worked in another building, but with his growing relationship with Ran, the brunette could often be seen heading over to the Medical Labs or local hospitals to eat lunch with him.

"Homemade lunches too," Sonoko observed as she watched Ran go one of those days from the window of an empty classroom they had commandeered for lunch. Then she heaved a groan and flopped onto her desk. "It isn't fair. Why can't Makoto just come home? He's already fought like, I don't know, whole bunches of really skilled guys, right? The least he could do is get back here so we could actually celebrate his victories together."

"Would you like a rice ball?" Aoko offered in an attempt to cheer the other girl up. "I'm trying out a few new fillings."

Sonoko continued to grumble under her breath about men and their inconsiderateness, but she took a rice ball and nibbled on it then blinked. "Hey, this is really good."

Aoko beamed. "Really? I'm pretty proud of them too." She quickly took the opportunity to redirect the conversation to food.

A few seats away, Shinichi was carefully reading through all the various local newspapers for signs of more Sleeping Sickness victims while he waited for Kaito, whose class wouldn't be letting out for another ten minutes or so. He hadn't seen any since the new year had begun, and he wanted to believe that was a good thing, but, with his life, he had long since learned not to assume anything. He knew some people believed that no news was good news, but he couldn't help but wonder if no news simply meant that the people in charge of searching for news had not yet smelled the stink and so they had yet to find the rot.

On the bright side, Kaito didn't seem worried. If anything, he had been in a rather good mood, though he had told Shinichi that he often dreamed of strange, ancient forests and great mountain ranges like scenes out of a fantasy movie. The wonder with which he described those scenes worried Shinichi a little, but he tried not to over think it. After all, most people could appreciate the immense beauty that only mother nature could create. Shinichi was no exception. And it was only natural to think of those wonders with a certain wistfulness when you compared it to the rampant destruction being inflicted upon the earth every day by human hands.

At least Kaito didn't think he'd had any more unexplained memory blanks recently. Of course, the problem with this was that a memory blank was a memory blank, and therefore not remembering having one only said so much.

"Kudo-kun, there's something I needed to speak with you about."

Shinichi looked up to find Hakuba sitting down across from him. "What is it?"

The blond seemed to mull over what he was going to say for a long moment, perhaps not sure what words to use, before he eventually spoke. "I couldn't help but notice that you and Kuroba have been spending quite a lot of time together."

Shinichi blinked. "Oh. Well, I guess we have. A lot of our breaks overlap."

"I heard you two attended the university orchestra's beginning of the year concert together."

"We did," Shinichi agreed, wondering what the blond was getting at. "Is there a problem?"

Hakuba hesitated again before speaking. "I was wondering what your impression of Kuroba is."

Shinichi blinked again. "My…impression?"

"Yes."

"Well, he's easy to talk to," Shinichi offered after some thought. "And he's been really helpful on the few cases I ran into while he was with me. There was this one murderer who might have gotten away if Kaito hadn't super glued his pants to his chair when no one was looking." Shinichi hid a smile at the memory. It probably shouldn't have been funny, but even the police had had a hard time keeping their faces straight as the man had to be carried out of the building, chair and all, for modesty's sake. "Though I have to admit I'm still not sure how he managed that. He's a very skilled magician. I can see what Aoko-san meant when she said she's not sure where he finds the time."

Hakuba quirked an eyebrow at him. "You have a high opinion of him then."

Feeling a blush rising, Shinichi ducked his head and hoped the blond didn't notice. "Well, he's…different. He can be pretty unorthodox, but his heart's in the right place, and I've never met anyone so good at thinking outside the box. He'd make a good detective if he were ever inclined to try it out."

Hakuba made a choking sound. "Have you ever told him that?"

Shinichi chuckled. "I did. He looked quite horrified."

"I would imagine so," Hakuba said dryly.

"So why did you want to know what I thought about him?" asked Shinichi. "I mean, you've known him a lot longer than I have."

"Well, you see…" The blond glanced over at Aoko and Sonoko then leaned over the table close to Shinichi as he dropped his voice into a whisper. "I have had this theory…or rather, I suppose I should say that I am convinced that Kuroba is Kaitou KID."

Behind the blond, the classroom door opened to admit the very magician they were discussing. Kaito paused just inside the classroom to survey its occupants. He spied Hakuba and Shinichi at once. The blond was leaning over the table between them, bringing the two detectives' faces so close together that it almost looked like they were about to kiss. Logically, Kaito knew that that was ridiculous, but that knowledge didn't stop him from making a low growl in the back of his throat.

He was moving towards them before he'd made the conscious decision to do so, gaze fixated on the back of the blonde's head. An irrational anger coursed through his veins. As he neared however, Shinichi glanced past Hakuba and met his eyes. The look of shock that flashed across Shinichi's face before the detective managed to hide it snapped Kaito back to his senses. By the time Hakuba turned around, Kaito had already reassembled his Poker Face and was grinning his typical, devil-may-care grin.

"Yo, that's a lot of newspapers you've got there," he commented, dropping into the seat next to Shinichi's. He couldn't resist slinging an arm over his detective's shoulders. "Anything interesting in the news?"

"Two more of the Sleeping Sickness victims have woken up," Shinichi reported, pointing to the relevant article. "They're still undergoing examinations at the hospital, but they both appear to be recovering well. Neither of them remember anything about who or what attacked them—if anything."

"I suppose that's good news of a sort," the magician mused. "That makes, what, two thirds of the victims all back on their feet and about ready to go home, right? Maybe it really is just a strange bug going around."

"There is also a new KID heist notice," Hakuba interjected.

Kaito brightened like the huge KID fan he was supposed to be. "Really? Hey, let me see." He snatched the top newspaper from Shinichi's pile and rifled through it until he found the notice. He laughed when he spotted the comments from Nakamori-keibu that accompanied the notice. "I see old man Nakamori's still as feisty as ever."

"I was just asking Kudo-kun if he would be attending," Hakuba said. "Perhaps you would like to join us. Or will you be busy that night?"

"What night is it?" Kaito asked.

Hakuba opened his mouth then shut it again.

"The police are still working on the riddle," Shinichi supplied.

"Will you be going?"

Shinichi shrugged. "As long as Division One doesn't need me, I think I will."

"Cool. Then let me know when, and I'll see if I can make it." Kaito hid a smirk at Hakuba's startled stare. "It was a real bummer missing the Christmas one. The videos of it online were awesome. It gave me quite a few ideas for my next show. Which reminds me." He flicked his wrist, pulling a small envelope out of thin air and handing it to Shinichi with a charming smile. "I got you a ticket to my next show. One of the best seats in the house."

"O—oh, thank you," Shinichi stammered, turning faintly pink. "You really didn't have to."

"It's no trouble. Just promise me you'll come."

"I will."

Across from them, Hakuba looked from one of the two to the other and back again and had to shake his head in befuddlement. He honestly had no idea what to make of what he was seeing. The two were so…comfortable with each other, and there was something almost, dare he say, possessive about the arm Kuroba had put around Shinichi's shoulders. It almost looked as if…

But no, that couldn't be it. He had to be missing something. Even Kuroba wouldn't be crazy enough to actually court a detective, especially not one who had begun going to his heists.

-0-

"So what were you two talking about?" Kaito asked. He was walking Shinichi to his next lecture, after which he would be headed to an interview with a national magazine that wanted to write a feature on Japan's rising star.

"He was informing him of his apparently extremely long term investigation into Kaitou KID," Shinichi replied. "Hakuba-san really has an amazing memory."

Kaito scowled. "You mean he's anal retentive."

Shinichi thought with some private amusement that Kaito and Hattori would get along swimmingly on certain topics. "To be honest, I'm surprised he didn't bring it up sooner."

"Aoko gets annoyed at him when he does it too much."

"Ah." They proceeded in silence for a few minutes before Shinichi broke it with a hesitant question. "When you came in. What were you thinking about?"

Kaito coughed lightly. "Nothing you need to worry about."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. Why do you ask?"

"Your eyes were orange for a moment."

If he hadn't been such a well trained actor, Kaito might have missed a step. Instead, all he said was, "I see."

Shinichi waited, letting Kaito mull over what he wanted to say. Eventually, the magician sighed.

"I was just a little upset," he admitted. "I didn't like seeing the nuisance so close to you."

Shinichi blinked. "Why?" It wasn't like Kaito hadn't seen him with Hakuba before. They did work the occasional case together.

Kaito shot him a sidelong look then started to laugh. "Just forget about it. This…condition seems to have had a negative impact on my temper. But it's nothing I can't handle."

Shinichi nodded slowly, not exactly satisfied but aware that there was little he could do other than to be there for Kaito if he needed him. "You'll tell me, right?" he asked softly. "If anything happens."

Kaito's eyes softened, and he caught Shinichi's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Of course. Thief's honor."

"I don't think thieves and honor typically have much to do with each other."

"Ah, but a gentleman thief like myself has standards. We're not your run of the mill thieves."


	15. Verge

There was a storm coming.

Kaito opened his eyes. The room was dark, but he knew that dawn was just five minutes away. He didn't stop to wonder how he knew this.

Swinging his feet over the side of his bed, he stood up and crossed to the window in two quick strides. Throwing open the curtains, he gazed out into the graying darkness. The surrounding houses gave him a moment's pause as they blocked out the horizon, but then the sky to the east began to glow a soft gold. He stood there and watched the sky change from nearly black to gold then to blue. Then he turned and paced around his room. He felt restless, but he wasn't sure why.

He wished Shinichi was here. Maybe he should go see him. If he flew, he could be at Shinichi's place well before his detective's only class for the day. Knowing Shinichi, he was probably still in bed, fast asleep and dreaming about coffee and Sherlock Holmes.

Or maybe he was dreaming about Kaito. The corners of the thief's lips quirked up at the thought. He liked that idea.

He paced around the room again before pivoting abruptly and making a beeline for his father's portrait. Five minutes later, he was gliding silently through the sky over a city slowly waking from a long night.

Letting himself into Shinichi's bedroom through the window was child's play (he made a mental note to do something to fix that later. He didn't want just anyone having access to his mate's room). As he'd expected, he found Shinichi still fast asleep.

Leaving his shoes by the window and his hat and monocle on top of his neatly folded suit jacket and cape, Kaito slipped under the covers behind Shinichi and gathered the detective into his arms. He smiled when Shinichi instinctively moved closer to him, mumbling something in his sleep that Kaito fancied sounded like his name. His beloved really was adorable. All the more so because Shinichi himself seemed completely oblivious to the fact.

Feeling much more content now, Kaito buried his nose in Shinichi's soft hair and allowed himself to relax. He wasn't drowsy at all, but he was in no hurry to go anywhere anymore now that he had Shinichi cradled against his chest.

-0-

Shinichi woke to the feeling of strong arms around him and a warm, calloused hand resting on his stomach under his shirt. He blushed. He knew the feel of that hand against his skin quite well by now, which was probably why he hadn't freaked out when he'd woken up to find himself not as alone in his bed as he was supposed to be.

Honestly though, he would have appreciated a heads up. But he supposed that that was what he got for dating a phantom thief.

"Kaito?" he whispered just in case the magician was asleep.

"Yes?"

Apparently he wasn't.

"When did you get here?"

"About an hour ago."

"Is something wrong?"

"Wrong?" Kaito echoed, sounding puzzled. "What makes you think something's wrong?"

"Well, I…wasn't expecting you."

"I wanted to see you."

A pleased smile made its way onto Shinichi's lips. He buried his face in his pillow in a reflexive urge to hide it, but one of his hands moved to cover Kaito's, pressing the magician's palm more firmly against his bare stomach.

Kaito moved to press a kiss to the side of the detective's neck. His tongue flicked out, trailing across soft, sensitive skin. He smiled when he felt Shinichi shudder.

He shifted, rolling Shinichi onto his back and leaning over him to catch the detective's lips in a deep, passionate kiss. His other hand joined the first under Shinichi's pajama top. The detective moaned softly into the kiss, and he made no move to object when Kaito crawled on top of him.

When Shinichi's alarm clock went off half an hour later, neither of them noticed.

-0-

"Your heist is tonight, isn't it?" Shinichi asked. He was seated at his dining table while Kaito poured them both some coffee and popped some waffles into the toaster. The reason it was Kaito doing all this even though this was Shinichi's house was because the detective's legs were still rather wobbly after their morning…activities (which had started in bed but migrated into the bathroom when Shinichi failed to tell Kaito not to 'help' him into the bath. The detective was honestly surprised that he wasn't still in the shower, pinned between the wall and Kaito's strong, wet body). Shinichi blushed and shuddered at the memories. He should probably come up with an excuse now in case any of his classmates asked him why he was limping. And he would probably have to forget about actually participating in the heist later as anything more than a spectator.

"It is," Kaito agreed. He set two plates of waffles on the table and went to fetch the syrup. "I assume you know where."

"The university's exhibition center at ten," Shinichi said promptly. "They're hosting that traveling exhibition of jewels once owned by the half Japanese actress Nora Mikagami. She was known for collecting gemstones that were reputed to have mystical properties related to healing and fortunetelling. The pride of her collection was an enormous emerald that was said to be able to absorb diseases, curing them."

"They say the lady was never ill a day in her life," Kaito said. "Unfortunately, that drew her a lot of the wrong kind of attention, and she was killed in an armed robbery. The emerald was only recently recovered and restored to the collection. Her descendants are touring the collection around the world in her honor as it's the one hundredth anniversary of her birth."

"Does the weather change your plans?" Shinichi nodded towards the window, which was dark despite the hour because of the heavy rains pouring from the sky. The storm had blown in seemingly out of nowhere sometime while they had been in the shower. It was drumming on the windows so hard that the glass panes were rattling in their frames.

"Not at all," Kaito assured him. "The storm will clear by then."

Shinichi blinked. He looked from the raging storm outside to Kaito then back again. It certainly didn't look like it would be clearing anytime soon. And when he'd checked the weather forecast, it hadn't predicted that the storm would clear until after midnight.

"You might want to make some backup plans in case it doesn't," he said.

Kaito smirked. "Aww, are you worried? Well, don't be. I always have backup plans. But I tell you, I'm not going to need them."

Shinichi looked again at the downpour. "If you say so."

"You'll see. You will be there, won't you?"

"As long as no cases come up today," Shinichi promised. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to referee between Sonoko and Aoko-san."

Kaito laughed. "You might at that."

The rain was still coming down in torrents when Shinichi had to leave for class. With the wind too strong for an umbrella, he pulled on a raincoat and asked Kaito to lock up when he left. Then he set out into the downpour.

Kaito double checked that all the doors and windows were secure (in some cases, he took a few minutes to make them more secure) before setting out himself.

-0-

It was a truly spectacular collection of jewelry. It wasn't just its monetary value or the glittering beauty of its many large and colorful gems though. It was the richness of the stories attached to them. The Life's Blessing emerald was the most famous, but it was only one of more than three dozen jewels said to be able to heal ailments, bring happiness, attract good fortune, sustain health, and even stave off the signs of aging. In all honesty, it had taken Kaito quite a long time to select just one target out of the lot. He had landed on the emerald because it was one of the smaller number of jewels in the collection that were as large as he imagined Pandora had to be. But this was one collection he felt he may very well revisit in the future.

But that was only a minor thought on his mind today.

Kaito ambled around the exhibit in the guise of, well, himself (he was a student at this university after all), making a show of admiring the collection while he checked in on the various surprises he had set up all over the building in preparation for the night's heist. The police were in a mad scramble since they had only cracked his riddle late last night. Now they were trying to check and secure the building without interfering with the lawful visitors streaming in and out.

Considering the raging storm outside, the number of visitors was far below what it could have been. That being said, there were more guests than Kaito had expected this early in the afternoon. It was only two even though you wouldn't know it from the roiling black skies outside. He supposed they could be trying to avoid the crowds who were bound to show up for his heist even though the exact time and location had only been announced in the papers this morning.

Or maybe something else was going on here.

Kaito found himself looking more closely at the men—all much too old to be college students—coming in out of the storm for a look around the exhibit. All of them were wearing long raincoats, though they were not all coats of the same style. Older men in raincoats wandering into a jewelry exhibit normally would not have struck Kaito as overly strange. Men liked art and history and movie stars just like women did. But these men were barely glancing at any of the exhibits. Instead, they were gradually distributing themselves around the exhibition hall.

Kaito hid a frown behind his Poker Face. Now that he thought about it, those long raincoats could hide any number of things including weapons. The police were still in the process of setting up the metal detectors at the door since they weren't expecting KID until much later today. They were planning to empty the building of unrelated visitors shortly before the heist. And the officers themselves were all busy right now trying to figure out where KID might make his entrance. None of them were paying any attention to the current visitors.

Kaito supposed he could just find an officer and point the strange men out. After all, he had no proof that they were here for no good. It was just that, having been around detectives and police for so long (and being a phantom thief himself), he had developed a healthy suspicion for odd people doing odd things that didn't make sense.

It was as he was looking around for an officer to talk to, however, that he noticed the number of police in this part of the exhibit had greatly diminished. All senses going on high alert, Kaito scanned the hall again then slipped into the shadows behind a pillar, exercising his skills as a master thief to erase his presence and simply melt into the plays of shadows cast across the exhibition by the bright displays in the dimly lit hall.

He stopped by the men's restroom first and made a few quick adjustments to his appearance. It was a good thing that he always kept a few tricks and quick disguises on hand. As a slightly older man with paler hair partially hidden beneath a baseball cap, he reemerged and set off to check out the rest of the building.

-0-

Stepping out of the lecture hall where he'd had his only class of the day, Shinichi was startled to see that the rain had stopped. The ground was still sopping wet and dominated by expansive and deep puddles, and the sky was still nearly black with storm clouds, but the air was crisp, cold, and clear.

Kaito had been right after all.

Shinichi shook his head, amazed despite himself. How had the magician known? Or were his instincts just that accurate?

Hefting his backpack higher up on his shoulders, he started off across the campus, mind wandering to what he should get for dinner. He hadn't gone grocery shopping recently, so he didn't have many ingredients to work with if he wanted to cook. He could pick some groceries up on his way home, but there was the KID heist tonight. It would be faster to just get takeout and go grocery shopping tomorrow.

He wondered if Kaito would join him for dinner or if the thief would be too busy making arrangements for his heist. He should call and ask.

Shinichi fished his phone from his pocket and dialed Kaito's number. To his confusion, the call went straight to voicemail without ringing. He left a message asking about dinner, but he was frowning as he hung up.

Kaito could be making some last minute preparations at the exhibit, but why would he completely shut off his phone? He'd asked Shinichi to call him when he got out of class after all.

Frown deepening, Shinichi turned his steps towards the exhibition hall.


End file.
